The Drarasiv Life
by ShadowfireAngel
Summary: Vilya has been living a lie all her life. It is on one fateful night that she finds that the world she has lived on for the last nineteen years is not her true home. Her true home lay away from this place of sorrow. Her true home will reveal to her what she really is. However, she is about to find herself thrust in the middle of a dire conflict and made the centerpiece of it.
1. Chapter 1: Different

**The Drarasiv Life  
****Chapter 1: Different**

**So…the last time I tried this story thing, it didn't work out so well. Most of you who are reading this should know what I'm talking about. I kind of, possibly, maybe, blatantly started a story that was possibly more or less a copy of another despite that having not been my intention at the time. I simply had an idea that I wished to share with others. The execution was rather poor though.**

**As a result, it was shot down and shut down rather quickly. At the time, I wasn't too happy about that, but I look back on that now and I am thankful it happened. So, as odd as it may seem, I would actually like to thank the people who called me out on that as from the ashes of that story rises a new one, this one you see before you. I have been working on this for several years now and I'm currently in the process of writing the final chapter.**

**One final note, I would actually like to shout out an individual who will remain unnamed unless they wish otherwise. I had someone at the time dip into my PMs detailing a good deal number of things that struck deep and made me think long and hard. So in a way, they helped contribute to this as well. They know who they are, I hope, and as such, I thank you sincerely even though that was several years ago.**

**Now, without further delay, enjoy!**

She has always known that she was different from everyone else. From the minute the female could discern what was right and wrong, what was reasonable and was not entirely reasonable, she knew that she was different. After all, how often do people encounter a girl that is 5'6" with dark, blood red hair? Not to mention she can make a pair of dragon-like wings appear when she chooses as well as a dragon-like tail.

Vilya would be that girl, the strange girl that everyone knows to avoid and that is precisely what happens. Everyone she has ever encountered likes to avoid her, ever since that information had somehow spilt into the public.

A half-dragon is what everyone seems to call the girl. Half-breed is used a lot as well. Although, she is just glad she wasn't hunted down like some rabid animal.

Even her teachers know to avoid her, but she stays out of their hair by sitting right up to the back of the room, doing her own thing. Although, one of her teachers seems more welcoming of her than she had thought possible.

This teacher is a strange person. Though, in her honest opinion, she wasn't sure she could call the teacher a 'person.' What person walks around with a strangely engraved choker around her neck as well as equally strange bracelets around their wrists?

Not mention she had what looked to be ivory white horns sticking out of her black hair if you looked carefully enough. All other students just figured it was some sort of accents, but Vilya can say for sure that they are horns. Even her emerald green eyes seem weird, but she thinks that that's probably just her. However, she still believes that the teacher is a lot like her, some sort of half creature.

Wherein lies another mystery. Vilya has no idea who her biological parents are because they most certainly aren't her 'foster parents', they freaked out and basically kicked her out of the house when she revealed what she truly was.

She never liked them anyway. They were always a pair of…of…suffice it to say, they weren't the best 'parents' to her.

So now she lives in the streets, wandering from place to place while still attending school during the school days. It can be a struggle at times, but she has developed a strong taste for meat, she absolutely loves it now.

So she'll snack on someone's farm animals from time to time. Not the best meal she could hope for, but it helps her survive and the idiots, by her reckoning, just assume it was some wild animal, and it works considering how close to a wild animal filled forest they are.

Back to the topic of school, the only reason she is still in school is thanks to that strange teacher who likes her more than anyone else. She had somehow, and Vilya for the life of her doesn't know how the female convinced the school to keep her in even though she had no-one to support her.

That was when she learnt that someone was paying for her to go to school, a benefactor in a way. Who it was was something she didn't know for sure, but Vilya was fairly convinced it was that particular teacher. Which brings her to the here and now. She has decided that enough was enough and was going to 'interrogate' her oh so friendly teacher into telling her who she really was, there was going to be no more secrets.

Besides, Vilya was getting sick of it.

The school hallway was long, with many corridors, many of them lined with lockers but she knew her destination, and the young girl knew that at this time that her teacher would still be here doing some other work. Left, right, right, right, left. Vilya eventually forgot about what turns she took and just headed the way she needed to. However, if Vilya had to be honest with someone, the school is far more extensive than it needs to be.

After taking one final turn, Vilya was now standing face to face with the door that her teacher would most likely be in. It was at this point that she was actually starting to have some doubts about going through with this, wondering if this was indeed a good idea.

Before Vilya knew what she was doing, her body carried her into the room.

"Ah, I was wondering when you would come."

Vilya looked over to the teacher's desk to see her sitting there, a warm smile on her face showing that she had no ill intent. She still didn't trust her fully though, she never really did.

"I assume you want to know who I really am?" She asked, tilting her head ever so slightly to one side.

At this point, the half-human, half-dragon girl couldn't bring herself to form any coherent words, so she settled for a nod. It seemed that Vilya's strange teacher was expecting her, making her even more suspicious of who the teacher really was.

"My real name is something I can't reveal here, but if you can trust me, I can show you to a place where I can tell and show you who I am."

_Really? You can't just tell me here and now? There's no-one else but us here. Who is going to hear us here? In the middle of an empty school building? Her words make no sense to me whatsoever._Was Vilya's thought.

"How can I trust you?" She asked cautiously.

The female's smile widened. "You are wise not to fully trust me. You have your father's cautious nature, he was much the same even when he met his love."

Vilya piqued up at those words. Her father? This woman knew her father? Did that mean she could trust her more? If she knew Vilya's father, she surely can't be that bad...right?

"You know my father?"

She nodded contently. "And your mother. They have missed you dearly for many years, or what would now be considered an age."

Her mother as well? At this point, the young girl was teeming with curiosity but was still very much cautious and alert. She had no idea if this woman is trying to trick her or what she was even capable of for that matter.

"Still cautious I see? Perhaps this might bring about a few memories."

From under her desk, she revealed a rather impressive looking blade which she laid on the wooden surface. It was currently sheathed, but Vilya could already see that it would be a beautiful piece of weaponry. Despite her caution, she moved her hand over the hilt of the blade, feeling slight electrical pricks run up her arm. The young girl rolled her other hand over the scabbard, feeling the soft yet firm fabric that housed the blade.

Again, she felt electrical pricks run up her arm.

"It looks beautiful...but, what's it got to do with me?"

The teacher's smile faltered, it looked as if she wasn't entirely confident what she was going to be telling Vilya next was going to be something that she would accept. At this point though, Vilya was finding it hard to believe anything, if she was honest with herself. It had to be said nonetheless.

"It's yours."

This was one of those moments in her life where she failed to register anything that is going on around her or happening to her as she tried to comprehend what the woman had just said.

Hers? This weapon was hers?

Doubtful.

"I don't think so. You must have me confused with someone else, I've never owned a weapon in my life."

Vilya very quickly removed her hands from the blade and turned to leave the room. However, her strange teacher had something to tell her before she took a single step.

Something unbelievable...

_"Navaqua__, I do not have the wrong person, listen to my words and remember__."_

Almost as soon as she finished her sentence, a series of emotions ran through the half-breed along with her body seeming to jerk wildly for a moment as she gripped onto the table, her fingers brushing the hilt of the blade once again.

Her mind suddenly felt lighter as a lock had been removed. Images…images flashed into her vision, images of she assumed to be of the past...her past.

A past she lived in, without the worry of humans.

_"I remember."_

She muttered something in a foreign language, and it was the last thing that registered on her mind before she blacked out completely, images of her past still being seen.

**Not gonna lie, I feel this is the weakest of the chapters in the story but I do believe it gets better from this point on. **

**I would like to give a shoutout to a very close friend. While she herself isn't on FF, as far as I know, she does have a DeviantArt page that you all should have a look into. Her name is eLucive and she is the owner of the character known as Navaqua who is a fairly major character throughout this story. She also helped me proofread these chapters, picking up on anything I may have missed myself. So, big thank you to her.**

**I also just want to point out, any further instances of **_"Words" _**happening is to indicate the characters are speaking in Draconian. I did originally have 'Draconian' words there but I thought this would be better.**

**I do hope you have all enjoyed so far and let's keep it going!**


	2. Chapter 2: A New World

**The Drarasiv Life  
****Chapter 2: A New World**

**So, I was going to upload this one last night, but due to some rather stressful circumstances, I didn't. That's neither here nor now. Onwards!**

Waking up in a completely foreign environment with her last memory being that she blacked out in a classroom with what she thought was a rather strange teacher and not mention speaking in an unknown language she never knew existed is somewhat disorientating. Except that waking up in a forest isn't wholly unfamiliar because she knew what a forest is. However, waking up in one she didn't know anything about or recognise, that is what was disorienting.

Not mention the strange noises all around her.

Sitting up, Vilya took a look around her, seeing if she couldn't determine where she was. As she thought would be the case, she wasn't able to. Not only because Vilya had no idea where she was or what was going on, but because the half-dragon was hopeless at navigating. Upon looking down, she was relieved that she would at least have some protection in the form of that sword the teacher showed to her.

Vilya may have been the wrong person the female was after, but the half-breed was thankful she had something to defend herself with.

Even if she didn't know how to use it properly.

"Good to see that you're awake."

And it was in that instant that something strange, something extraordinary occurred.

It suddenly felt like she lost control of her body momentarily as she rolled backwards, somehow grabbing the hilt of the sword, over herself and onto her feet, pushing upwards to a standing position. She spun lightly and perfectly balanced on the balls of her feet to face the source of the voice, ending with the sword in front of her...ready to strike.

Vilya's eyes blinked several times as she tried to process what the hell had just happened. Perhaps it was this new place she was in? Couldn't be, because this isn't the first this had happened to her.

Could it be the draconic part of her reacting in defence?

It could possibly explain how she managed to fend off three men who were out to get her one time, why they were trying to though, she never found out. The thought of having a 'guardian angel' did make her feel better, now knowing that there is some part of her that is able to defend her if need be.

Hesitantly, she lowered the sword until it was at her side and strangely enough, she still felt somewhat comfortable and ready holding the blade, like she could defend herself at a moment's notice.

"It would seem your draconic half is reawakening."

The half-human, half-dragon looked over to the source of the voice to discover, there was a dragon...standing right in front of her...not attacking...and was talking...not to mention she was a good two or three feet taller than Vilya was.

Yet, she looked strangely familiar.

Her black scales, ivory white horns, emerald green eyes and a choker as well as bracelets that all reminded her of her strange teacher. The only thing that was different was the tail blade she had.

It looked like a scythe, a rather deadly one.

"You look at lot like..."

"Your human teacher? That's because I am her and now that we are in a safe place, I can explain what's going on."

The dragoness invited Vilya to follow her, which she did hesitantly, as she led her to a small campsite that she seemed to have prepared. How she did it as a dragon though was beyond Vilya's thoughts at the moment. The dragoness made herself comfortable as she laid down on her stomach, motioning for the girl to take a seat across from her. Slowly, Vilya sat down and immediately felt a significant amount of discomfort coming from her lower back, near her tailbone.

It was then that she realised that her tail was actually in view, not hidden, somehow, from view like it would typically would be. She quickly readjusted herself, wrapping her rather long tail around her upper thigh. It was also at this point that she noticed her wings were in view as well.

"So how about I start from the beginning?"

Seemed a logical place to start, so Vilya just gave her a simple nod.

"Well, to start with my name is Cynder and you're in the realm of Avalar, it's home to many creatures with the prominent races being Dragons, Cheetahs and Moles. You'll find the Cheetahs mostly in the Valley of Avalar whereas you'll find all three of the aforementioned races living together in...a kind of harmony, more or less, in the city of Warfang. It is one or two days journey to the East of here."

_Ok, that wasn't that hard to understand and get a grasp of but how __do __I fit into it__ all. _Was the next thought to plague Vilya's mind.

"The next bit is going to take a bit of explaining," Cynder stated, seemingly reading Vilya's mind.

"Why's that?"

"Well, it'll be a bit of history about events that have occurred within Avalar as well as history into how you being what you are, a Drarasiv. To most Drarasiv, the term 'half-dragon' is seen as somewhat of an insult. Although Drarasiv is no better and is still not appreciated, it is a much better term to use. The history of the Drarasiv is rather extensive. If you wish, I can go into depth of how it is what it is, or I can, instead, give a shortened version."

The half-breed nodded her head and motioned with her free hand for Cynder to continue. "The long version if you please."

"A Drarasiv is a mix between a Human, a race which is long since considered to be extinct, and a Dragon. Generally, a Drarasiv comes to being if the father was Human and mates with a female Dragon, however, it can be the other way, but it was an uncommon occurrence.

Nowadays, Drarasiv comes from a female Drarasiv or female Dragon mated with a male Drarasiv.

If it did happen the way I explained earlier, it was not often that the Human female survived the birthing process due to the high stress it put on her body hence why it was, and still is, more common for a female Dragon to conceive a Drarasiv. Even then it can still be dangerous for the dragoness in question."

"It started back roughly two ages ago. That would be approximately 2,000 years ago. The first Drarasiv was conceived to a Human male and Dragon female pair who had fallen in love with each other. At this time, it was heavily frowned upon, banned according to actual writings, for Dragons and Humans to cross-breed. Despite this, the two lovers crossed that boundary, quickly going into hiding when it became evident that the female was pregnant with the male's child. From that point, it was a hunt for the two.

They thought that they were safe, roaming the wilderness but even if they weren't near the Dragons, there were many other creatures they had to worry about. Some had been long since forgotten, had passed into myth.

But they were far from being a myth.

One such creature had attacked the two, proving to be a challenge for the two considering the female was more concerned about protecting the unborn child. It took time, but from what is known, they manage to defeat the creature. Whatever it happened to be. Several months later, the female gave birth to the child, and instead of being an egg, it was a child in the form of a Human with Draconic aspects. Wings, horns, tail, even a tail blade, anything physically Dragon was there."

From time to time Vilya had nodded, acknowledging Cynder after each bit she explained, otherwise she just listened intently, more than just curious about her past, her ancestors even.

"Humans were masters of combat with weaponry. Dragons often speculated that they, in a way, bonded with their weapons, it was as if the weapon, whatever it happened to be, was an extension of their arm. The Human male began teaching his child, when of appropriate age, how to use the weapon he had. It was at this point that they learned that a weapon in the hands of a Drarasiv can help channel their element into attacks.

It is not known what happened to cause Humankind and Dragonkind to allow cross-breeding, but it has happened. However, there has always been a group going around that seek to kill all Drarasiv. The strange part of it all though is that they are Drarasiv themselves. Many suggest that they will make themselves the last to go once they are certain all other Drarasiv are dead."

Vilya found that Cynder wasn't kidding when she said the history would be extensive, but she wasn't expecting it to be that long. She was still glad to have learned the extended version, even if it is screwing with her head along with everything else.

"And that's only a small portion of the whole thing."

"What? That wasn't it all?"

Cynder simply shook her head. To know that there is more than what Cynder had already explained, perplexed Vilya even further. However, there was one thing lingering in her mind.

She raised the blade that was clutched in her now clawed hand. It was a beautifully crafted blade, long and slender. The blade itself was straight with a small design that she couldn't make out on the blade near the crosspiece. The crosspiece curved around the blade like a claw, each part being slightly separated from each other, with each section having a depiction of a dragon head facing opposite directions. The handle was leather bound, and the pommel piece on the end was curving either way like a fountain.

"How is this mine?"

"From a young age, a Drarasiv is taught by their Human parent, nowadays a Drarasiv parent, to wield a weapon. They go through extensive training with said parent, and the weapon essentially bonds with you, and you know that when you can feel electrical sparks run through your arm whenever you touch the blade."

That explained the pricks she first felt when she had first touched the blade in the school. Despite all this, it is still a lot to be taking in all at once, Vilya wasn't entirely sure this was even real.

"Drarasiv who are exceptionally talented with their weapon of choice can channel their elemental power through their weapon."

Elemental power? So what? Fire, Earth, Water and all that?

"What kind of elements?"

"Too many to list. The main ones are Fire, Earth, Electricity, Ice, Shadow, Wind, Poison and Fear, each has an alternate version of the element, paraelements if you will. For example, an alternate of Ice is Water."

Vilya sighed and rubbed her head slightly as she felt an oncoming headache. This was too much, way too much, she felt like freaking and screaming right now, but she just didn't have it in her to do it. She knew she was different, but this is different altogether.

"This too much to be taking all in."

"Unfortunately, it's not the last thing. Look at your arm."

She did exactly that, and she could see what looked to be silver scales slowing covering her arm. How had she never noticed that before? She had no idea and as she looked back up at Cynder to ask, said dragoness was already answering.

"As you stay in Avalar more and more, your Draconic aspects will become more and more prominent. For example, scales."

Silver dragon huh? She was willing to assume that meant either her Dragon or Drarasiv mother or Drarasiv father is some sort of silver-scaled dragon which would correlate to what element exactly? The only one she could think of that would link to silver would be Wind.

_Forget it._

"Can we go to this city you mentioned earlier and finish everything there?"

Cynder threw her head back in laughter knowing how much it is to take in but it wasn't a cruel laugh, and Vilya couldn't help but chuckle along with her.

"Sure, maybe you can learn to fly along the way?"

Fly? With her wings? Not likely.

**This chapter has the potential to likely confuse some. If that is the case, let me know and I'll see if I can't explain it better to you. Sorry in advance if that is the case.**


	3. Chapter 3: Survival

**The Drarasiv Life**

**Chapter 3: Survival**

**Just gonna quickly answer a few reviews then we jump right into it.**

**LoNeWoLf: I'm very happy to hear that. I hope I keep your attention throughout the whole story :)**

**SKdaGamer: I've been aware of the room for expansion in that first chapter and I'm glad someone has pointed it out to me. I'm likely to go back and add more to it, as its currently length leaves me room to do more. Just understand, there may be some likelihood somethings go unanswered. However, all in all, I'm glad you are liking the story so far.**

* * *

Vilya kept thinking to herself. _One or two day's journey? What if something should happen during that time? What if we got split up somehow and I got lost? What then?_

**You're overthinking...**

Her step faltered as she heard a voice. Vilya looked around wildly for where it may have come from, but she couldn't come up with anything and knew for sure that it hadn't come from Cynder. With a simple shake her head, Vilya just chalked it up to the exhaustion that was starting set in. She was really hoping they'd be stopping for the night soon; she was never one for long distance travelling.

And of course, her earlier questions came back to bite her.

Cynder suddenly stopped as her head jerked up, eyes wide and alert. She looked around the immediate vicinity as if trying to discern where something was coming from, she had assumed a battle-ready position but wasn't crouched down.

The black-scaled dragoness suddenly leapt backwards as a blur landed where she was moments ago before it ran straight past Cynder without hesitation upon seeing its initial assault failed. It moved with such speed that neither female got a clear enough look at what this 'blur' was.

"Run." She told Vilya without looking.

Cynder gave Vilya no time to argue with what she said as she charged headlong after the ambusher. So the Drarasiv did as she had been asked to…she turned and ran.

* * *

While the Drarasiv female dashed off in a direction of her own, Cynder was dashing after their ambusher. Twigs and leaves lashed at her as she sprinted past them, a small snarl rumbling in her throat as kept her eyes on the dark figure in front of her. They were not going to get away from her so easily. Yet, after some time, the figure stopped, turning to face Cynder with a smirk on its face.

The figure, feminine in appearance, tipped her ram horned head to one side, a knowing sparkling look in her sky-blue eyes. Cynder herself also slowed, eventually coming to a halt in front of the female. She seemed very much at ease and comfortable in the presence of the figure in front of her.

"What took you so long?" The female asked.

The ebony dragoness rolled her eyes, unable to stop a smile tugging at her lips in response. "You don't exactly make it easy you know?"

The female stood tall and pride, her smile beaming at Cynder. "That's the point!"

"How about we circle back to Warfang before Vilya gets there before us?" Cynder offered, chuckling softly as she and the female figure headed for the Dragon City.

* * *

Vilya knew not how long she ran for nor if Cynder was still ok. If she was honest with herself, she did feel somewhat sorry for leaving her behind even though she knew that she wouldn't have been able to help her much. Slowly, she came to a stop, leaning against a tree as she tried to steady her breathing. Each breath was laboured gasp, a slight wheeze was present each time she breathed in.

However, when her breathing returned to normal, there was but one question, moving through her mind. What was she supposed to do now?

**Survive...it is a test.**

Vilya jerked her head up sharply, immediately wishing she hadn't as she head-butted the tree with the back of her head. Her hand quickly found its way to the back of her head as she tentatively rubbed it while looking around.

"Who's out there?"

**Not out, try within.**

The Drarasiv then noted for the first time that voice seemed to be coming from within her, within her mind. It was a strange sensation, to say the least, and now knowing that she was in no immediate danger, she slowly got to her feet.

"Who are you?" Vilya asked...to herself anyhow.

**I am your draconic half, and I am known as Navaqua.**

Navaqua? Vilya vaguely remembered the name. Her strange, strange teacher, who was Cynder, had used it in conjunction with some other language. The pieces started falling into place as the half-dragon girl realised that, if she understood right, Cynder had theoretically awoken Vilya's Dragon half more than what she previously was.

"You said something about surviving?"

There was an internal nod which, to Vilya anyway, was really strange. It certainly felt weird as well.

**Yes, from what I understand all Dragons and Drarasiv undertake this trial where they are taken out to survive. Dragons are more aware of this hence the Drarasiv will only know if their Draconic half tells them.**

"Ok...how does this surviving work?"

**It's easier for Dragons then it is Drarasiv. The latter requires the two halves to work together, using the skills they both have together.**

At that point, the half-breed pretty much deflated and she was pretty sure Navaqua was well aware of it as well because it felt as if she had piqued up.

**What troubles you Vilya?**

Hesitation ran unchecked through Vilya, she didn't want to say anything that could possibly let Navaqua down, or make her feel like she was with a useless half. Again, she was pretty sure Navaqua felt her hesitance.

"I'm useless, I don't have any skills that could really help..." Vilya sighed sadly.

Navaqua started chuckling then it slowly turned into a laugh that left the young girl thoroughly confused. Why was she laughing? Although the thing that relieved Vilya was that she could tell that it wasn't a mean or cruel laugh, one that would be used to put someone down.

**You say that, but you need only reach inside of yourself to find your skills. Who do you think it was that defending yourself the times you did?**

"You?" Vilya asked uncertainty.

**Are you asking or telling? Regardless, it was actually you. You may not have realised it at the time but you were acting upon instinct, draconian instinct to protect yourself. A dragon's instinct is a powerful force and something not to be underestimated. I had no influence in that. That instinct will only get stronger should you ever bear a child.**

"Then what about-?"

**The encounter with Cynder was me because I was more awake than any time when you were in that other place. You will notice a key difference between the two in that you lost control of your body momentarily when I sprung into action as opposed to defending yourself. Believe in yourself Vilya. It may take time, but I promise, you will you find that there is so much you can do. Plus, I will be there to help you in any way that I can. Trust me.**

Trust her? How could Vilya trust anyone at the current moment? No-one has adequately explained to her what it is that is happening or why it is that she is in this strange, new world. It was a little hard for her to find within herself to trust someone, even if that someone was a voice that was a part of her.

_Although, Navaqua has been nothing but helpful and caring towards me…perhaps I will be able to trust her…_

**There is a saying in the Dragon tongue, **_**If you can find it within yourself to do so, then it can be done. **_**It loosely translates along the lines of being able to do anything you desire should you try to do it and commit yourself to it. Something even as complicated as aerial combat.**

"Aerial combat?"

Navaqua nodded.

**Due to the two differing personalities, it is challenging, if not impossible, for one half to fight and stay in flight. What happens instead is that one half does the flying while the other does the fighting.**

To Vilya, the two personalities doing one bit each sounded worse than one half doing it all. Wouldn't it be easier that way? How is it more difficult?

**You're probably thinking of how hard it is? Yes, it is tough to do, it requires the two halves to be in sync with one another hence I said 'try.' Very few ever master it.**

"Let me guess, all Drarasiv attempt to master it."

**You seem to be gaining some understanding**.

For the first time in a long while, Vilya chuckled. "Not quickly enough, but what I don't understand is how it is it more difficult for one half to do it all?"

**Unfortunately, not even I know that answer to that question, at least beyond the fact there are two differing personalities. From what I understand, not a single Drarasiv knows the answer to that question. Even those of us for have been around for centuries.**

Vilya shrugged and then continued walking the way she had been running earlier. "Fair enough. What say we get to doing this survival stuff instead then?"

* * *

It would seem that when Vilya had run from whatever had ambushed her and Cynder, she had been, more or less, heading in the right direction of Warfang. By the words of Navaqua, she had tracked somewhat right of where the city would have been.

Navaqua began teaching Vilya different means of navigation as they travelled and know approximately where they were during the first night by starlight navigation. She told Vilya roughly how far they were, that being a day, then showed the young girl the cues by pointing them out with her arms once Vilya had surrendered control of her body to the dragoness.

Navaqua had also done the hunting by taking control of Vilya's body, which again, Vilya had to surrender control. Whenever Vilya had to 'transfer' control of her body, it felt utterly weird, like she was a prisoner in her own body. When it came to the hunting, Navaqua pointed out what needed to be done, stressing that patience was the most important part of hunting. Essentially, all of what Navaqua was teaching Vilya, she was going to get Vilya to replicate tonight.

_Granted, it won't be as good as her, but it'll hopefully be a start. _Vilya thought.

Navaqua had also gone over some of the basics when it came to flight, but at the current moment, Vilya found that she couldn't do much more than hover in place. It was a start, however, and the end result was a draconic companion who was very proud of her human partner.

As for right now, Vilya was just wandering in the general direction of Warfang, occasionally being nudged back in the right direction by Navaqua. At several instances throughout the day, mostly when pausing for a short break, Vilya would practice flight, again, not getting much more than a hover still. However, she was getting higher with each attempt, inviting Navaqua to say that very soon, Vilya will be soaring through the skies. However, for right now, Vilya had the night to worry about as it soon rolled in as nothing of interest occurred in the day.

She went about a small clearing that was nearby, setting up a small sheltered area for a fire before stalking off into the night in search of prey. Immediately, she could feel her senses heighten as Navaqua gave to her the same strength senses the dragon herself would have.

She was assaulted by a mirage of new smells and sounds that were all around her. Before the enhancement, she could smell and hear everything that was around her, but that had now been increased tenfold, giving Vilya the perception of what is like for dragons. The smell of deer came to her, and she quickly discerned that it was coming from in front of her somewhere but it was faint, very faint at the moment indicating, as Navaqua told had her, that the deer was a distance away from Vilya.

Crouching low, she stalked through the darkened forest, doing her best to make not a sound but it was difficult to do given she has never had to sneak before. However, she was better than she thought she would be. The smell got stronger the more she moved forward, and when she was confident the creature was not far from her, Vilya crouched down low behind a bush as to conceal herself as her final enhanced sense kicked in.

Sight.

Everything around her seemingly got brighter as her prey came into view. Standing a short distance away was the deer Vilya had smelt, and now the smell was stronger than ever. She went to take a few steps closer to the deer when Navaqua hissed in her mind, warning her not to go any closer otherwise the deer may smell or see her.

Vilya desperately wanted to get closer, but if it meant potentially losing food, then she would push that desperation aside and listen Navaqua. Now came the tricky part. Vilya had been astonished by how easily Navaqua made catching the animal look and yet, she's hasn't had to hunt till yesterday.

Or so Navaqua had told Vilya.

Taking a deep breath in an attempt to steady herself, Vilya focused her gaze solely on the deer. She placed her hands either side of her as she crouched down lower, bending her arms to ninety degrees at the elbow to give herself extra propulsion forward.

She would have added her wings into the mix, but she wasn't quite sure that would go down well.

With one last steadying breath, Vilya propelled herself forward towards the deer, said creature narrowly skittering out of the way of Vilya's clawed hand as she took a swipe at the forest creature, hoping to catch its throat. It quickly dashed past Vilya, not bothering to turn but instead forcing Vilya to turn and run off into the night after it.

The deer was fast, but so was Vilya, keeping the distance between the two as it was, neither closing nor getting further away. Yet, at this rate, Vilya was reasonably sure that she was going to run out of breath and then the deer would get away.

**Use your wings!**

She did hesitate briefly, mainly because she was still unsure about using her wings. It was only a momentary hesitation. She leapt forward, giving her wings as big as a flap as she could, landing Vilya on the back of the deer as her clawed hands sunk into its neck.

The deer slowed down as its life seeped away before it finally collapsed onto the ground with the Drarasiv still astride its back and her claws in its neck. She withdrew said claws slowly as she took into account what she had just done.

Vilya had taken something's life, even though it was an animal.

**Do not fear, Vilya, it shall get easier.**

Would it? Would it honestly ever get easier? She didn't know if she could handle having to hunt something, to take its life just so that she can survive. If someone else did the hunting, however, then she would be okay with it.

As she now began to think about it, she had killed animals from the farms on the human world from time to time. That was so she could survive, and it never bothered her then that she had to kill them.

So why was it affecting her now? Was it something to do with this place?


	4. Chapter 4: Warfang

**The Drarasiv Life**

**Chapter 4: Warfang**

**SKdaGamer: I did not even notice that. Pays to have other people noticing these things as they read the story I guess. Tweaked that little part as a result. Glad to hear you are still enjoying the story.**

**LoNeWoLf: *shrug* People do what they do. Everyone is different in how they story write. I personally could've gone the prejudice route if I desired, but it didn't feel right for where I want the story heading.**

* * *

Vilya had estimated that they were at least three-quarters of a day from the city known as Warfang, but Navaqua gently corrected her by saying that they were actually half a day out, still applauding on how quickly the half-dragon seemed to be picking this up. Vilya simply told Navaqua that she had a fascination for the stars, so she had paid very close attention to what the dragoness was saying and indicating when Navaqua was teaching her.

Vilya quickly found out that Navaqua had a similar interest in the stars.

The journey had seemed shorter than what she thought it would have been, for a two-day trip anyway but she wasn't complaining. Vilya will be glad to be in some sort of city once again. It just so happened that said city was now within her view, she was almost in civilisation once again.

_There it is…_

The walls of the city rose high into the air, making Vilya crane her neck back slightly to see to the top where several bipedal figures were moving along the lengths of the wall. One of them happened to stop and look in the general direction of the half-dragon.

The figure acted as if it were squinting its eyes to see if it was indeed Vilya they were seeing. To assist them with that, she continued her walk towards the city which got their attention for they turned around to shout something. While Vilya could hear the faint noise from where she was, which surprised her, she could not distinctly make out each word. As her footsteps brought her closer to the gates of the city, the gates themselves opened up, revealing to Vilya two dragons and one Drarasiv_, _at least she assumed that's what they were, walking towards her.

One of the dragons was purple scaled in colour. He, again Vilya assumed 'he', had two large, yellow horns that sort of zigzagged backwards, his underbelly was a goldish colour, his wings were a somewhat dull yellow, orange even, colour. He had yellow spines, starting from the middle-top of his head, that worked their way back along his neck and spine before stopping at the end of his tail. On the end of his tail was a rather significant spike, again, yellow in colour.

The second dragon she was able to immediately able to identify as Cynder, so she turned her attention to the other Drarasiv_._

She was roughly around the same height as Vilya was, maybe a little shorter than she was. She was covered in dark green scales, with two equally large dark green wings connected at her shoulders. Her dark green scaled tail swished lightly behind as her light grey eyes studied Vilya closely and carefully. On her head was a cluster of horns, two large ones shaped like those of a ram, while several others were interspersed among her head. She wore what looked to be an outfit made entirely from fur covering her torso and lower body with a fur cloak hanging at her shoulders. Finally, a studded mace was hanging at her hip.

**The mace would be her and her other half's weapon of choice. One she most likely got given to her by her father.**

Internally, Vilya nodded her head to signal to Navaqua that she had heard what she had said, but she gave her full attention to the three in front of her.

Cynder took a few steps forward, closing the gap between them slightly as a smile began to grow on her face, one that showed that she was proud. What she was proud of though, Vilya had no clue, but she felt was about find out.

"It would seem you have adapted to your new life faster than I thought you would. Consider me surprised."

The Drarasiv smiled, laughing slightly. "If I'm honest, it doesn't feel like that. This all still feels very foreign to me."

"Well, I'd be even more surprised if you were fully adapted." Cynder replied, nodding to show she understood, "But I suppose you are curious about who these two next to me are."

Vilya gave a simple nod.

"The one to my right is Spyro, and the one to my left is Awyn or is it Gaia currently? I can never tell."

The female giggled lightly as she looked at Cynder. "It is Awyn currently. We aren't that confusing you know. Our personalities are quite different you."

"I beg to differ," Spyro interjected. "Being able to swap back and forth between who is in the forefront is confusing."

Vilya smiled a little at the exchange before interjecting herself. "Let's stay on track here shall we?"

**Taking the initiative? Very nice. **Navaqua praised.

**_Please, anyone can take the initiative, Navaqua._**

To hear the second voice in her head was utterly startling. Hearing one voice inside of her head was bad enough, but two of them? No thanks and it seems it didn't go unnoticed by the other Drarasiv.

"Not used to more than one voice in your head?" Awyn asked.

"I don't think I'll get used to one voice in my head let alone another one."

Awyn giggled lightly, and Vilya heard another from within her head. She was reasonably sure that it was Navaqua, but with having had another voice in her head moments ago, she wasn't so sure now.

"Don't worry, I haven't, and I don't think I will either, but we have gotten off track again. Shall I show you around?" She offered before looking at the two Dragons present. "Unless you two have something you wish to say or do?"

Vilya glanced at Cynder as if asking for permission, which she found rather strange, but she was already getting a nod from the dragoness, a smile spreading across her lips, her head also tipping to the side.

"There's nothing else that needs to be done at this stage."

With that thought in mind, she walked past the two dragons and into the city with Awyn. However, an odd thought made itself known as Vilya stood under the gates of Warfang. She turned back, looking at Cynder with the question poised on her lips.

"How did you get away by the way, Cynder," She asked, tipping her head inquisitively, "as you ran off after the assailant? Which also begs the question of are you alright?"

A smile tugged at the dragoness' lips as she bobbed her head before gesturing towards the city with a wing. "I am perfectly fine. I will explain later when we have some time together. What happened earlier is nothing to be concerned or worried about."

* * *

"What is your name? Sorry, I never asked earlier."

"Vilya and if you want to know, my dragon half is called-"

"Navaqua." Awyn interrupted, a smile on her face as she saw Vilya's confusion. "My dragon, Gaia, is close friends with her, best friends you could say. They've known each other for several lives."

"How does that work though if we die?" Vilya curiously asked.

"Well, while our physical bodies may die, the spirit of our Draconic half endures, spending its time with the Ancestors until they regain their strength once again. They then find a suitable Drarasiv that can host them, and from there, they bond."

"Sounds rather disorientating."

Awyn smiled lightly. "Maybe it is, maybe it isn't. Only they know."

As they walked through the city, Awyn pointed out several buildings, all shops, that she thought may be good to know of during Vilya's stay in the city. As the walk took them through the marketplace, she did something similar for the various market stalls scattered throughout the central part of the city.

The central part seeming to be the busiest part of the town.

Awyn explained that many who reside in Warfang live in the city proper, but that there is also another place that some of the residents. It was mostly dragons and Drarasiv but Vilya understood why as Awyn pointed out the structure at the very back of the city.

It would be hard to miss. Towards the back of the city, basking the vibrant rays of the dwindling sunlight was a massive structure, soaring several hundred feet into the air.

"That there, is the Warfang Temple. A small portion of the city lives up there. However, the dragons that you'll need to know about that live there will be the Guardians, Spyro and Cynder. They are generally who you would go to if you have any worries or concerns. You can also find a few of my friends and myself living up there as well."

Vilya had barely heard what Awyn had said just then as she was in awe at the sheer size of the place as well as the sheer beauty of its construction. The wonder was so much that the half-dragon almost missed the next bit Awyn said.

"I think you'll be pleased to know that your parents are currently living there."

Her parents? Her real, biological parents? Maybe she could finally ask the one question that was plaguing her mind.

_Why was I sent away?_

* * *

After what must have been another half hour or so, their walk finally brought them to the steps that led to the Warfang Temple, the one place that her parents were currently residing in.

_Yet, why I am feeling so nervous right now? Why is there the feeling of 'butterflies' in my stomach?_

"You'll also find something else interesting here." Awyn started, drawing Vilya from her thoughts. "From time to time, you will most likely encounter young dragons and Drarasiv here in Temple as it also functions as an educational facility for them."

So primarily, it was a place to live, and it was a school. Given the size of the building, that didn't surprise Vilya in the slightest.

"Little ones running around huh?" She stated lightly. "How will I ever cope?"

Not only did this elicit a laugh from her new friend beside her, but it also got a laugh from a small group approaching them. Awyn had looked in the direction of a said group, a grin forming on her lips. She seemed to recognise them, so Vilya naturally assumed that these were her-

"Vilya, these are my friends, Thrae, Sil, Alushae, and Yrev."

-friends.

Three dragons and one Drarasiv was the group's composition, three guys and two girls. Vilya got the feeling that she would most likely even that out now though. There was the impression that she was here to stay with this lot.

"I like her already Awyn, given what she just said." Alushae chirped.

She was a turquoise blue scaled dragoness with the membranes of her wings being of a dark blue, almost dark purple colour. Two long, slim, grey horns started at the side of her head and went backwards, with pairs of smaller horns running along her head in between her horns, with the last and largest of the pairs being between her horns. Her eyes were unique, they were silver in colour, but unlike the two males, she seemed to lack a tail-blade.

Sil was a fire red scaled dragon with the membranes of his wings being a light orange and having a little bit of red mixed in with them. His horns were a dull orange that were angled backwards, starting just lower than the back of his head. He had small spikes that started in between his horns and stopped just before going down his neck. His claws seemed to be slightly longer than other two dragons present, and his tail was the same with the tail-blade being that of a battle axe head. His eyes were yellow in colour, and the strange thing was that they seemed to be glowing.

Yrev on the other hand…paw…or whatever was a bright yellow scaled dragon with the membranes of his wings being a faint violet colour. His horns went straight upwards but in the shape of a lightning bolt with his tail-blade being much the same, sparks of harmless electricity occasionally jumping off of it. His final feature was his eyes which seemed to be of the same colour as his scales.

"Why?" The one known as Sil asked, a sly grin on his face. "Just because she's another female and evens the numbers out?"

"Oh leave the poor girl alone," Yrev replied before raising an eyebrow curiously at his friend. "Besides, were you not wanting another female to join the group? Something to do with more opportunities?"

Given what the electric dragon had just said, it sounded like Sil was going to be someone to keep an eye on.

"'More opportunities?' So I'm merely an opportunity?"

"You'll learn to ignore most of what he says as he generally means nothing by it."

Vilya looked to the final person who had spoken, Thrae. Like Awyn and Vilya, he was a Drarasiv, standing inches taller than she did which made her feel small for she thought she was tall. He was covered in obsidian scales with the membranes of his wings being light grey. He had two ivory white horns curving over the top of his head while there were several smaller horns, almost like a crown, in between and either side of the horns. He wore a single piece garment that covered his torso and the more private areas of his body. Slung over his shoulders looked to be a quiver of arrows with an exotic looking bow resting inside the quiver.

"Is that so?" Vilya asked him.

"Indeed it is. Sil will try to flirt with just about any female he can."

Sil simply shrugged. "What? Won't know unless I try."

Given the fact that everyone else just rolled their eyes at him, it gave Vilya the feeling that this isn't the first time that that 'remark' has gone into a conversation like this before.

"Uh huh, sure but how about we show our new friend here around?" Awyn offered.


	5. Chapter 5: Revelations

**The Drarasiv Life**

**Chapter 5: Revelations**

**SKdaGamer: I'm aware. I didn't forget. I intentionally did it that way. It will be touched on later on in the story though.**

* * *

Instead of being shown around like Vilya was first told would happen, the group just started asking question after question. Basically, they were trying to get to know her better. She was perfectly fine with this ideal. However, she avoided the more personal questions or questions she wasn't comfortable answering.

Despite being bombarded with questions, the group still managed to show Vilya around the temple, explaining what needed to be told in full detail. The sheer size of this place had her astonished, after all, it was a place for a variety of species to live, train, learn and not to mention get fed and much, much more.

It was Vilya's turn to ask a question of her own, one that had been burning in my mind for a while now.

"What do you do for entertainment around the city?"

Sil scoffed. "That's a loaded question if I ever heard one."

Alushae bumped into his shoulder, glaring at him, showing that his sarcasm wasn't needed nor was it appreciated by some of the group. However, it only caused him to chuckle as he grinned at the turquoise scaled dragoness. She merely rolled her eyes at him, shaking her head in mock dismay.

"It all depends upon what interests you," Awyn answered, seeing as no-one else was about to. "Which brings me to my next question, what does interest you?"

Vilya stopped in her tracks rather quickly as the question played through her mind. What did interest her? On the human world, she had never considered such thoughts as no-one wanted her anyway, but now that she was here…

What _would _interest her?

"I-I honestly don't know…no-one wanted me anywhere on the human world…"

The stinging pain of hurt rolled through Vilya, causing her heart to skip a beat as her eyes began to sting. The tears that welled up in her eyes made it very hard to see much as the world around her quickly became blurred. She quickly wiped the tears away, however, but not fast enough.

Awyn wrapped a gentle arm around the silver-scaled female's shoulder. Her face was showing concern for her and went to speak, but was beaten to it by someone else.

"Well, you will not have to worry about that here, my dear daughter."

The voice was familiar to Vilya, and as she turned back the way they had come, she spotted who it had come from and almost fainted on the spot as a spark of familiarity soared through her being.

* * *

As a door opened to a room, the occupant within replied, turning as he did so to see if it was who he thought it was.

It was indeed.

"Hello, my love, how was your walk throu-"

He stopped suddenly as he saw who followed in after the female Drarasiv who he had proclaimed his lover. In from behind her came another a Drarasiv, also female. However, it was their appearance that caught the man's eye the most. His eyes went wide with surprise as his jaw slackened, opening slightly, showing his shock and astonishment even more. His clawed hands were trembling as he took a few uncertain steps forward towards the newcomer as they did so towards him. Upon being within arm's length of the newcomer, he tentatively raised a hand to the female's cheek, gently placing it there, afraid that she might disappear.

"I-I can't believe you're back…you're finally back…"

The newcomer nodded, and a silence lasted between the two before the female was jerked forward as the male Drarasiv brought her into a crushing hug. The female let out a cry of surprise as she was brought forward, unsure of what to do at first until she relaxed into the embrace, hugging the male back.

"My daughter has returned home…"

A grin broke over his face as he pulled her in closer, his next words causing her to jump as he said them louder than he had said the previous ones.

"My daughter has returned home!"

A chuckle to his left brought the male Drarasiv back to reality as the older female placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, gesturing down to their daughter.

"Perhaps you might want to let her stand on her own two feet?"

The male chuckled as he brought the girl back, holding her at arm's length, inspecting her carefully.

She stood slightly shorter than him in height, a broad smile present on her face. She was covered head to toe in silver scales, with two equally silver wings attached at her shoulders. The membranes of said wings were white in colour but highly transparent, it almost looked as if there were no membranes to her wings at all. The hair that framed her head was dark, blood red in colour, yet they made her grey coloured eyes stand out more sharply. She wore a simple white shirt, and black shorts that went past her thighs, around her neck was a green cloak with its hood being down and at her hip, attached to a belt that secured her shorts, was an intricately designed blade, the blade itself having a slight curve to it.

"My dear Vilya …" The male said, his clawed hand running down her cheek again.

The female chuckled again, pulling the male away. "Azarias dear, give the girl a moment."

Vilya, for her part, had a flurry of emotions through her body. Standing in front of her, were both of her parents…people whom she had thought, for seventeen years of her life, never existed. She had thought she was doomed to an existence without parental care.

And yet, here she was with her family once again.

Azarias, Vilya's father, stood taller than her and just could not remove his eyes from his daughter, in fear she would disappear again. He was covered in scales the colour of snow with membranes of the white wings being a faint, icy blue colour. His grey hair framed his head with his fringe sweeping down past his forehead a little, but not so far as to obscure his sea blue eyes that held nothing but love within them. He wore a simple black shirt and trousers and at his hip was a blade looking very similar to Vilya's.

Aurora, Vilya's mother, stood at the same height as her and bore the same silver scales that she did, her wing membranes being very similar to Vilya's, but they were much more visible. Unlike Vilya's, she had deep blue hair framing her head, going as far as her shoulders but no further, her strangely orange eyes showing amusement as she watched her mate not want to let go of Vilya. She wore a simple gown, light blue in colour, that covered all bar one shoulder and one leg up to her knee and unlike the other two, her weapon was not at her hip but slung across her shoulders as it was a large blade.

"Why?" Vilya simply asked.

Both her parents knew what she was asking about and after briefly glancing at each other, and a silent conversation, her father, looked back at her and nodded. He let his hands drop to his side and sighed, as he pointed back to the couch in the main room. The three of them gathered on the couch, Vilya sitting in the middle with either of her parents on either side of her. Vilya's gaze was locked solely on the floor as she waited for one of her parents, either of her parents to start explaining.

"Where do we start, Aurora?"

Aurora opened her mouth several times as if to say something, but each time she closed it again, not sure if what she was going to say would be right. It went on like that for several moments, and it was starting to grate on Vilya's nerves. The half-dragon very quickly became frustrated that her parents were dancing around the issue.

"How about you start with what caused you to send me away?" She questioned, more forcefully than she likely intended.

"Two ages ago…" Aurora said, turning her gaze to the nearby window. "The land was torn with war and chaos. It was no place raise a hatchling, not when someone like Malefor was roaming the land. Most, if not all parents with children, spread out across the world, hoping to hide from the devastation that was spreading.

"But Malefor had already seized most of the land in his talons, so it did not matter where anyone went, they would suffer from him. Even when he was imprisoned for a time, his servants still shed chaos and anarchy in his wake in an attempt to bring him back. Many eggs and hatchlings did not live to see through the First War or the Second War. Your father and I thought that there was only one way we could keep you safe without doing it ourselves."

Aurora stopped at that point, it became apparent that she didn't want to speak any further of what had occurred.

"We knew of an ancient spell that we could invoke that would keep you safe. Forbidden magic if you will. It required the blood of the person to be sent away." Azarias continued for her. "Wanting to keep you safe from the dangers of the land at the time, we did not see it as forbidden magic. However, there was one problem with it and that is what makes it classed as forbidden. We know that it would take you away from this world, but we knew not where it would send you or what would become of you."

"So you essentially gambled with my life? Hoping I went somewhere that wasn't dangerous?" Vilya asked before her father got any further.

Silence.

Vilya was on her feet in an instant, moving away from her parents.

"How could you have done that? What made you think it would be a good idea to do that?"

Silence again, so Vilya continued to rant.

"What if I had of died? What if where I was sent was worse than what was happening here? What if-"

Vilya cut herself off short and sighed heavily as she ran her hands through her red hair, the one question that had been plaguing her all her life coming back once again.

"Why did you do it?"

Given how there was still silence, Vilya assumed her parents weren't going to answer her. As such, she began to turn to head for the door until she heard the faint words come from her mother, stopping her heart cold.

"You sent yourself away."

* * *

Over the next several days, rolling into a new week, Vilya had refused to return to what was now her home. It was there that the initial altercation with her parents occurred. Despite having revealed the truth to her and sharing with what had happened, she found it difficult to believe.

Why would she, a young child, send herself away? It didn't make sense.

As she had been leaving the room, her mother had moved to intercept her, seeking to comfort her. However, Vilya had moved quickly, leaving no time for that. The young half-dragon made it clear she wanted to be left alone and Azarias reinforced this fact, placing a hand on Aurora's shoulder and telling her to leave Vilya be for a time.

They were not expecting it to be days though.

Vilya had wondered the halls of the Temple for a time before she ran into Awyn. The earth Drarasiv, sensing her friends distress, offered for her enter her home and talk things out. Even though, Vilya didn't really share much, Awyn got enough out of it. She offered to let Vilya bunk in her room for a time until she was ready to face her parents again.

A gesture that the silver Drarasiv greatly appreciated.

In the current day, Vilya was looking up at towards the very top of the temple. The sunset was beginning to set on this particular day and Vilya realised she might able to a rather spectacular view from up there. However, there was but one problem stopping her from getting up there.

Her flight ability or, rather, lack thereof.

**I could fly you up there if you wish? **Navaqua offered, having noted Vilya's apprehension to try and fly up there.

Vilya shook her head defiantly. "_No, I'll never learn if I always let you do things for me."_

**I'm not the best to teach you flight, but I can give you a basic to get you going. Close your eyes take a deep breath. Forget about all else around you and focus solely on your goal. Flight**

Vilya closed her eyes, envisioning the spot she wished to reach from behind her closed eyes. With each breath that she took, Vilya let herself relax more and more until her body felt weightless. From behind her eyelids, she could see a 'vision' of herself gliding up towards that spot until she was hovering near it, at which point, a voice called out in her mind.

**Open your eyes.**

Vilya did precisely that and found her feet no longer on the ground, but instead in the air, just in front of the roof of the temple from which she had come from. Her eyes widened in surprise as she peered down below to where she had been standing moments before. The shock and surprise of what happened had her drop and wobble a little before she recovered, albeit a little slowly.

"_I did it…I actually did it…"_

**Well done ****Vilya****, you are learning quickly.**

For the first time since meeting Awyn's friends, a smile broke across Vilya's face as she nodded. She looked around the roof for the perfect spot, finding it next one of the large stalagmite structures rising from the roof of the temple. She sat down with her back to the structure and drew her knees to her chest, resting her chin on her knees. With a deep sigh, she sat still, watching the sunset from where she was.

"The sunsets are always beautiful at this time…" She said after a moment of silence.

**Indeed they are, but would you-**

"_No, I don't want to talk about it." _Vilya interrupted. "_I'm sorry Navaqua, but now is not the time. For now, I would like to just sit here and watch the sunset. So, if you can please, I would like to be alone for a time."_

**You've said that the past few days I've offered as well, but I will respect your decision.**

Navaqua gave an internal nod and then was completely quiet, her presence seemed to even fade somewhat. For the first time in a long time, the young half-dragon felt genuinely alone with nobody else with her.

She felt like herself.

For more than half an hour, she just sat there in the silence that enveloped her. The only noises that would disrupt would be the sounds of nature around and the occasional ruckus from the city down below her. So enveloped was Vilya that she didn't hear that light drop behind her and with Navaqua not with her currently, she had no warning.

"You alright Vilya?" came a voice from behind her.

Startled, Vilya whipped around and got to her feet. Her wings flared out behind her as she moved a hand to the hilt of her blade. She relaxed, however, when she noticed who it was that had spooked her. Given how they had raised their hands in defense, with a small smirk, she couldn't help but let a small smile through.

"Sorry, Thrae, but you kind of did give me a fright. I wasn't expecting anyone else to come up here."

The male Drarasivnodded. "I can tell, considering Navaqua seems to be lying dormant at the moment."

"She told you where I was didn't she?"

Thrae moved to stand beside Vilya, his gaze locked on the city below him. He watched as the last bits of activity die away to the quiet of dusk. Only then did he give a response.

"Potentially." He responded.

"'Potentially?' What kind of answer is potentially?" Vilya asked incredulously.

"Sure Navaqua could have communicated with my Draconic half, Mitnena, but who's to say I wasn't already looking for you."

A raised eyebrow was pointed in the direction of Thrae. "You expect me to believe that?"

"Believe me or don't, that's your choice." He shrugged, seemingly unfazed by her disbelief. "I simply wished to see if you were alright."

"Of course I'm fine!" Vilya snapped, harsher than she meant to which she quickly remedied by lowering her voice. "I simply wished to be up here to watch the sunset…"

The male Drarasiv gave a short bark of laughter as he echoed Vilya's previous words in a mocking tone.

"You expect me to believe that?"

Vilya turned her towards Thrae, a slightly wide eyed expression before it narrowed. "Are you going to continue to be a prick?"

"That depends on you."

"Truly?" Vilya asked in an exasperated tone.

"Yes, so why don't you talk to me and tell me what is troubling you?"

"No." Vilya defiantly said.

"No?"

"No. 'No' means I do not wish to explain anything to you because I do not have to."

"I only want to-"

Thrae was suddenly cut off as his view was met with a fist. He reeled backwards, dazed for a moment. Shaking the stars from his eyes, he looked back towards the half-dragon girl and saw Vilya hovering a short distance away from him, very much upset with tears rolling down her cheeks.

"I never _asked_ for your help! I don't _want_ your help! All I _want_ is to be _alone_! Is that so hard to understand?"

Knowing that it would most likely earn him another blow, Thrae quietly stood up and hovered over to where Vilya was. She was immediately tensed upon seeing him move over and tensed further as he reached his arms out to her. While she knew the gesture was one that meant that he merely wished to hold her. He sought to help her get through her pain but she was ready to fight him off, even if she had no capability to fight in the air.

"Yes, it is because I can see you are hurting and need help…" He answered softly.

As his arms found their way around her body, she thrashed against him, trying to break free, to push him away but his grip was too firm. No matter how much she moved, he would not relent his grip. He moved back to the roof they were on previous, setting down gently when it was beneath his feet. He began to sit down, coaxing Vilya to follow as he gently pulled her down with him, but not forcing her to.

She went down with him regardless; her head being cradled against his chest as small tears still streamed down her face. Vilya's struggling became less and less until it ceased altogether, the only signs of life in her being the subtle shaking of her shoulders as she cried softly.

"Just because you calmed me, barely, down doesn't mean I'm telling you squat…" Vilya said softly.

Thrae's chest shook, and there was deep rumble coming from within him indicating that he was most likely laughing gently. "So be it but you need to tell someone, whether it be today or another day and whether it be me or someone else."

A nod of the head was the only response he received.


	6. Chapter 6: Past Remembrances, Pt 1

**The Drarasiv Life  
Chapter 6: Past Remembrances, Part 1**

**Divine the Withered Soul: Thank you. The was the general idea I was hoping for. Something interesting. I'm glad to hear it has had its intended effect. I do hope the remainder of the story interests you so.**

**SKdaGamer: Things start arcing up a little from this point forward. I personally feel from this point forward is where I do a little better of a job but I'll leave that judgement to you and all the other readers.**

* * *

Many hours later, Vilya found herself standing in front of the door to her new home. The home which had her parents in it. The one she had yelled at for sending her away, when, in reality, it had been herself that was responsible for her leaving the world.

"When I say I don't need an escort, I mean, I don't need an escort." She complained.

Thrae had all but insisted on 'escorting' his Drarasiv companion back to her room. He wouldn't take no for an answer. To the point of he just started following her.

"It's for your own safety. You've no idea the kind of those that have it out for us Drarasiv." He would tell her.

She merely rolled her eyes. She had a dragon consciousness resting inside of her and seemed to be somewhat proficient with her blade when caught unawares. How hard could it be to defend herself?

Of course, she knew that those words were going to come back to bite her later on.

"Ok, whatever. You've escorted me here. I'm safe. I'm home. You can go now."

Thrae raised an eyebrow at this. "If I didn't know better, I would be tempted to think that you don't want me around."

Vilya rolled her head, tilting it to the side, looking up at the half-breed standing next to her. She had a look on her face that was akin to annoyance and frustration. The archer Drarasiv simply held his hands up in defence, backing off a few steps before giving a slight bow.

"I know when I'm not wanted. Goodnight Vilya."

He turned and started walking away, gaining no response from the female half-breed. At least for a few moments. She turned her head slightly to the right, the direction Thrae had gone, glancing at him, her lips giving way to the briefest of smiles as she spoke up.

"_Goodnight_ Thrae."

The Draconian word made Thrae freeze in his tracks for a moment. He turned slightly, glancing back over his shoulder at Vilya, eyes wide with surprise and shock. The Draconian language was not used much in the current day and age as very few still knew it. Now that he knew that there was someone else who remembered the language, he too gave the briefest of smiles, giving a short bow of his head before striding off again, this time, not stopping.

With a deep inhale, Vilya turned her head back to the door in front of her. She shifted her weight from her right to left, staring intently at the doorknob. She knew that she had to talk to her parents; she had to know what had happened that night. Had she truly declared to her parents that she should be sent away?

There was only one way to find out.

With yet another deep breath in, which she exhaled slowly, Vilya reached for the doorknob. It was cold to the touch which was understandable considering it was made of metal. However, the cold feeling of the doorknob intensified the sense of dread inside of her. She did not want to go through with this but knew she had no choice. She knew she had to.

She jerked the doorknob to the right, hearing the faint clattering of metal as the latch pulled away, allowing her to swing the door open. Peeking inside, Vilya couldn't see anyone in the main living room, but she could hear faint voices from beyond. The half-dragon girl stepped inside, closing the door behind her quietly, wincing a little when it made a somewhat audible click. She obviously still didn't have the doorknob turned as far as she had thought. The hushed talking ceased immediately, and footsteps could be heard coming from what she assumed to be a kitchen.

Stepping into the dark living room was her mother, Aurora, who stopped when she entered. A silence ensued between the two for a moment before a voice broke it, but it wasn't Aurora's.

_**Step closer, child, all six of us need to talk.**_

Aurora got a scowl on her face and seemed to look down a little, not saying a word. She did, however, sigh and shake her head slightly. Turning slightly, the older woman gestured for Vilya to follow her and started walking back to where she had come from. Vilya followed after but her eyebrows were furrowed, and she wore a look of confusion. She had undoubtedly heard the voice in her head but knew not where it came from.

**That would be your mother's dragon, Freya. She is…rather blunt but that would be mostly because she is still reasonably young. Both the dragons that your parents carry are young actually which is kind of ironic. **Navaqua said, clearing her confusion.

"_Younger than you?"_

Vilya got an internal nod. **Indeed. I have had eight different hosts, with you being the ninth. They have only seen three or four each. Don't get me wrong, they are still centuries old and two fine dragons, but are still wyrmlings in my eyes…and yours.**

Vilya chuckled lightly before, dropping it and adopting a look of seriousness. She stepped into the kitchen which was a spacious area. Her father was leaning against a counter, and her mother was on the opposite side, having resumed the position she had before. Vilya for her part quietly stood in the doorway, somewhat awkwardly and unsure.

_**That's your daughter? She seems like a rather unimpressive thing.**_

Vilya visibly flinched at those words and Aurora's eyes went wide. Azararis' eyes closed briefly and much like Aurora had, his head bowed for a moment, before he looked back up, letting his anger slip away. The young half-breed could feel that dragon residing within her father still did not approve despite anything he may have said.

For the moment anyway.

**You would do well to be careful with the words you speak, Davnik. I will not tolerate any hostility towards my host.**

Everything went quiet for a moment. There was a palpable tension in the air, so thick that it could be cut. Aurora put a hand to her mouth, trying to suppress a smile that was attempting to break out on her lips. She knew how Freya, her dragon, reacted when Navaqua spoke out to her alone, desiring to have not involved Vilya yet. With Navaqua speaking out again now but at Davnik, the same thing was likely to have happened.

Which indeed it had. Azararis himself had to stop himself from letting out a laugh as his dragon stumbled over himself. The dragon tried to form some sort of response but couldn't.

_**Navaqua! I…uh…I…mean…that is…oh dear…**_

"_What was that about?" _Vilya asked internally, her head tipping to one side as she looked down

**It is a long and complicated explanation that I will give to you at a later date. To put it simply, I have lived the full life of a dragon in a physical form and been as I am, spiritual, for a very long time. With my eight other hosts, through them I have been recognised for many great things we have accomplished together to betterment of the Realms. Many other dragons look up to me and respect me.**

Vilya nodded her head and made a mental note to ask for that explanation later. However, she turned her attention back to her parents for now, giving them a wave of her hand, prompting them to continue.

"We understand you aren't happy with how things have been, but please understand we did not want it any more than you did." Azararis said, looking at his daughter. "But you must also understand that it was a time and situation beyond our control, not to mention how things were done."

Vilya nodded. "I understand, but what could have been so dire that _I _would choose to send myself away?"

_**Malefor, you foolish girl. You've obviously learnt nothing in the time you've been here.**_

**Davnik…you are overstepping your bounds. **Navaqua responded, a low, defensive growl in her tone.

_**Then perhaps you should make sure that you don't choose a sorry excuse of a host next time! She should have stayed on that other world, far away. There she could cause no harm to anyone else!**_

Navaqua was bristling at this point and was on the verge of anger. However, she was beaten to the punch as the mood of the room seemed to lighten and the presence of Davnik seemed to fade rapidly. Aurora looked over at her husband with a knowing glance who in question was looking like he was about to lose it. Azarias took a deep breath in, slowly letting it out as his eyes closed momentarily.

"I don't care if it is my dragon, no-one will talk to my daughter that way…" He growled softly.

Both the sighs of Navaqua and Freya could be heard. Freya's presence seemed to be fading, but much slower than what Davnik had.

_**I will go see to Davnik and give the four of you peace to talk.**_

"Despite having been rather crude about it, Davnik is right," Aurora said, breaking the silence once Freya was gone. "Malefor is the sole reason for everything happening as it has."

Vilya frowned. "Who is Malefor?"

"Malefor was a Purple Dragon intent on the destruction of this world. During his time, he sowed chaos, havoc and destruction across the entire world. From the frozen peaks of Dante's Freezer to the scorched lands of Munitions Forge." Aurora continued.

Azararis nodded. "Indeed. He had many resources at his disposal, the least of which was a vast army of ape-like creatures. They moved much like we do and were able to wield weapons with surprising proficiency. However, perhaps the most dangerous part about Malefor was his ability to corrupt dragons."

"In the early days of the Second War, Malefor attacked a Temple dedicated to the dragons in the nearby swamps. Two such hatchlings of that temple were corrupted and used to serve him during this great war. You know them as Spyro and Cynder."

Vilya held her hand up for a moment. "Wait, wait, wait…you mean to tell me that Cynder, the one who I'm assuming was watching over me in the human world, and Spyro, the Purple Dragon I met earlier today, were under the influence of this Malefor? Forced to do his bidding?"

"Yes." Aurora confirmed, nodding her head. "Were it not for two other dragons that were secreted away, they would have caused massive ruin across the land."

"Two other dragons?"

Again, Aurora nodded. "I do not think you have met them yet, but their names are Arxad and Elyssa. Arxad is a Purple Dragon much like Spyro and Elyssa is actually Cynder's sister which is why they look alike when you see them side by side."

"And I'm assuming they are the ones who saved Spyro and Cynder?"

Aurora nodded. "Not before Malefor was freed from his prison in Convexity and allowed to return to the mortal realm once again. Just as he was 2,000 years ago."

**Perhaps it would be better if we showed her?**

Azararis and Aurora looked at each other, looks of concern on their face before looking back at their daughter. Though they spoke, they weren't talking directly at her.

"Navaqua, would that be ideal?"

Navaqua gave a shrug. **The whole history? No. I couldn't share that with her even if I desired to. A segment of it however? Yes. It would show her better than us trying to explain to her how Spyro and Cynder were freed. **_**How **_**they did it is the only memory I possess.**

"_Segment? Memory? What are you talking about?"_

**For you to gain a better understanding of **_**how **_**Arxad and Elyssa accomplished what they did, it would be better for me to show you. Elyssa shared the memory with my previous host, thereby, sharing it with me also. I can share this memory with my host.**

"Why does it matter if I know how they did it?" Vilya asked out loud without realising.

**Their powers are not something that can be explained without a great deal of confusion. It is a topic we could go on about for hours.**

Vilya threw her arms out to the side, having no idea what else to do at this stage. She glanced at both of her parents, her eyes pleading for guidance.

"If Navaqua thinks it is necessary, then I am not going to argue with a dragoness who has more experience with this than either me or your father. I am not about to argue with a dragoness who is some 900 years old." Aurora answered, a soft smile gracing her lips.

Azararis nodded in agreement. "The decision is ultimately up to you of course, Vilya.

With a sigh, Vilya dropped her arms back down to her side.

"Alrighty, guess I'm going to relive history. Well, a part of it anyway."

* * *

"Just relax while you sleep. Navaqua will guide you." Aurora comforted as she sat on the edge of Vilya's bed.

After having agreed to experience the memory, Vilya was told to lay down and get comfortable. She was shown to her room which she was told hadn't changed much in the time she was gone. It was spacious, with a bed resting against the far wall with a small, wooden chest resting at the foot of the bed and a window above it, looking over the grand city of Warfang. Two bookshelves rest against the wall the door was situated but were empty. There was another door near one of the bookcases that Vilya assumed led to a bathroom. She promptly laid down on the rather soft and comfortable bed, resting her hands on her stomach, turning her head to look at her mother.

A thought then struck Vilya, causing her to turn her head and look at her mother. "Is Navaqua really 900 years old?"

Aurora chuckled softly. "Ask her yourself."

**Aurora, you of all people should know it is never nice to ask a lady her age. **Navaqua replied, a tone of teasing in her voice.

Aurora grinned and shook her head a little. She then leaned in and gave Vilya a light kiss on her forehead.

"We'll be right out in the living room." She explained as she stood up and started to leave Vilya's room, closing the door quietly behind her.

Vilya sighed. She didn't see this as being necessary but would do it if it was needed. With a deep breath in, she slowly closed her eyes, slowly exhaling as her eyelids shut completely. Usually, she would find herself hard pressed to find sleep, but in a situation where rest was needed, she seemed to fall asleep quickly.

* * *

"Open your eyes."

Viyla knew not where the voice came from, but she found herself opening her eyes without a second thought. The view before was utterly unbelievable and astonishing.

A vast ocean for as a far as the eye could see and she seemed to be standing on top of the water below her! Every which direction she looked, there was no land in sight, only horizon and lots of water. The sky was rather dark and miserable as heavy, dark rain clouds littered the sky, bringing down the whole mood of the atmosphere. The one thing that stood out, however, was the shipwreck floating just in front of her with a turquoise scaled dragoness resting on it.

She was a reasonably large dragoness. Atop her head were two large horns that started out large and circular at the base and got slightly thinner as they went up. Starting at the top of her forehead was a trail of spines that went back between her horns, down the back of her neck, along her back and all the way along to her tail, stopping shy of her tail-blade. Said tail-blade was a strange shape, one that Vilya couldn't find herself describing. Under each spine was a distinct dark purple mark running horizontally with the spine standing in the middle. The dark purple mark was the same colour as the dragoness' wing membranes.

This dragoness was sitting calmly atop the floating shipwreck, flicking her tail around every now and then, causing some water to be splashed around. The ocean itself also seemed to be very calm.

"It is good to be able to finally meet you in person, Vilya." The dragoness said, a smile gracing her features.

Vilya could not help but smile a little herself as she gave a small bow of her head out of respect. She was in the presence of a dragon. Not only that, the one who resided inside of her and seemed so ancient, and yet, not so ancient as far as appearances went.

"I will not deny I have wondered on occasion what the great dragoness inside of me looked like." She declared, her voice echoing across the open plain of water. "I must say, I am not disappointed."

Navaqua gave a small bow of her head in return, her smile growing wider. "I would hope not. I like to think I take good care of my appearance. Especially for such an occasion as this."

The dragoness climbed off of the shipwreck and onto the water's surface. Navaqua didn't sink into the water, much like Vilya, and walked across until she was standing just in front of the Drarasiv. Turning on her side, she lowered the right half of her body and right wing towards the girl.

"Climb on."

Vilya looked generally surprised that the dragoness offered to have her on her back. Navaqua noticed her apprehension and hesitance to which she merely smiled gently. The small smile seemed to help assuage Vilya's hesitation as she took a few paces forward across the ocean, still surprised how she didn't sink like a rock. She placed a hand on the dragoness' right foreleg and reached up, grabbing hold of one of her spines. She bounced up and down on the balls of her feet a few times before pulling herself up with all her might, giving a quick flap of her own wings to help her momentum, swinging herself between two of the spines along Navaqua's back.

"Whoa…" Vilya muttered, swaying slightly in her seating.

She gripped the spine in front of her as Navaqua began to slowly rise up, righting herself. She spread her wings, bringing them to their full span. With a crouch and mighty leap, Navaqua jumped into the air, giving several flaps of her wings as she started rising into the sky.

Vilya yelped at the sudden movement as she leaned forward over the spine she was gripping, said grip tightening as she held onto it for dear life. Through her fear, she could make out Navaqua giggling a little as the dragoness glanced over her shoulder.

"Relax, Vilya. Nothing can hurt you here. This is our domain, or your mind if you are to be technical. Nothing happens here without your consent."

That did help Vilya ease up somewhat as she sat a little straight, easing her grip on the spine. Her mind, however, was still in a state of fear but it was calming down slowly. It didn't help that the surroundings were still rather dreary and dull.

As soon as the thought was finished, Vilya paid witness to something extraordinary.

The surroundings started shifting. Everything turned to white for a moment, the water rippled and started changing, the sky doing the same. The ocean went from a dark blue, foreboding mass into a large, lush, green field, stretching for as far as the eye could see. Trees and small pockets of forest were littered throughout the landscape, adding a sense of peace to it all. Small amounts of flora and fauna also made themselves known, shimmering or growing into existence, yet again adding to the peace. The sky gave way to a bright, blue, clear sky with the sun shining brightly down on the pair.

"What the…"

Navaqua smiled. "Your mind reacts based on your own thoughts and desires."

"So, you are saying that because I was in fear of fall and did not like the landscape, my mind changed it to give something nice and more appealing to me?" Vilya asked, thoroughly confused.

"Yes, but I sense your confusion," Navaqua said as she veered towards the ground a little. "I will try to explain later for we are at our destination."

Peering over the side of Navaqua slightly, Vilya could see that they were descending towards what she would describe as a glade. A more substantial number of trees surrounding a small pool of water that shimmered and rippled slightly. Navaqua landed near the pool of water, crouching down when she landed and shifting to one side.

Vilya swung both legs to one side and slid down off of Navaqua, landed on the ground lightly but with a soft thud. Her gaze was currently locked on the pool of water she was approaching.

"It is called a Pool of Dreams," Navaqua explained as she followed behind the half-breed. "Everyone's mind contains one. It is where dreams are made and memories stored. Very few people ever get to see it though."

Vilya frowned. "How does it help us when the memory you want to show is in your head."

Navaqua smiled, nodding her head. "You would be right in that, except, you forget that I am a part of you. All my memories and thoughts are shared with you."

"Your memories?" Vilya asked, somewhat surprised.

"Yes, and I can choose to share them here with you if I so desired," Navaqua explained further as she began to close her eyes. "But let us begin. Watch the pool intently."

Vilya nodded her head, turning her attention back to the Pool of Dreams. It shimmered slightly, small ripples disturbing its surface. Navaqua bowed her head near the water, blowing across its surface causing it to ripple even further and as Vilya watched, she saw images start to dance across its surface.


	7. Chapter 7: Past Remembrances, Pt 2

**The Drarasiv Life  
Chapter 7: Past Remembrances, Part 2**

**SKdaGamer: There it is. I knew at some point there was going to be something someone didn't like or agreed with. I had come to terms with that when I started uploading the story. Don't get me wrong though, I'm not upset. You are entitled to your opinion and you weren't spouting blatant hate like I have had so many times in the past. I had started working a series of stories several years ago that likely would have answered so much of what I'm going with here. I canned them due to blatant hate and that I couldn't handle at the time. Regardless, I do hope you can 'tolerate' it and that it doesn't detract from the rest of the story for you as they are not the focus of the story. **

* * *

"_Our master returns…" A dragon crooned as he placed a crystal in front of a column of light._

_His scales were a very, very dark purple while his underbelly was a dull and faded gold, his eyes were pure white with red irises. On his head were two dull gold horns, zigzagging upwards and away from the front of his face. His wing membranes a very dark, very faded gold and he was easily twice the size of most dragons. His tail-blade had a striking resemblance of a leaf, it too was a very dull and very faded gold._

_Next to him was a dragoness who was both grinning and purring with delight. Her were scales of the blackest night while her underbelly was blood red in colour, with her wing membranes being of a similar blood red, darker even. On her head was a crown of ivory horns that seemed to surround her head, surrounding her dark, emerald green eyes that gleamed with satisfaction. Around her neck, forelegs and tail were choker like jewellery, all bearing a strange symbol. Her tail-blade looked very sharp and very deadly, hold similarities to a scythe._

_Both watched, grins on their face as their column of light in front of them flared to life._

"_Oh, no…we're too late!" Cried out a feminine voice from behind._

_Spinning around, the two large and menacing dragons found themselves face to face with two smaller dragons, no larger than a wyrmling. However, these dragons were no simple wyrmlings considering all they had done._

_The small dragon on the right bore bright, purple scales while his underbelly was a faded blue colour. His eyes were red in tone, but they seemed a slightly softer red, his horns started on the sides of his head, just before his neck, and trailed backwards, arching upwards very subtly. The membranes of his wings bore the same faded blue that his underbelly did and seemed softer in a way. The tail-blade on the young dragon held a likeness to an arrowhead, being triangular in shape and being pointed at the end._

_The young dragoness in many ways looked like a small version of the larger dragoness. Her scales were, more onyx or ebony in colour than pure black and her underbelly was a dull white, light grey could also describe it, instead of blood red. Her wing membranes were white in colour but a very soft white, softer than what the underbelly seemed to be. Instead of a crown of horns circling her head, the young dragoness had two horns that started just behind her sky-blue eyes and curled around much like how a ram's horns would._

"_This is the end of it all now!" The large dragoness declared._

"_Your continued annoyance ends here, foolish wyrmlings!" The male growled._

_All four dragons dropped into battle ready stances while a glowing dragonfly that was with the two younger dragons backed away. The two purples began circling each other with both of the dragonesses doing the same. The four split off into two pairs, moving to different areas around the pulsing column of light._

_The two purple dragons faced off against each other, walking around and around in circles. One large and corrupted by the powers of the Dark Master he had just started resurrecting, the other, young and determined._

"_Spyro! This not who you are meant to be!" The young dragon called out. "Search inside yourself, find who you are meant to be!"_

_The corrupted dragon known as Spyro sneered. "You're a fool if you think I am to be any different than I am and you are twice the fool if you think you can take me on!"_

_Spyro charged forward, head lowered, intent on impaling the smaller dragon with his horns. The younger dragon met the challenge, charging ahead with his head lowered. However, he would have only butted heads with the massive dragon were it not for the fact he dropped to the ground, sliding under the dragon. He reared his head back slightly, looking up at Spyro's gut and fired his element breath straight into it._

_A flash of emerald green spewed forth from the young dragon's mouth, arcing out and darting out quickly. Spyro was lifted off of his feet slightly, growling in pain as he slid past the small dragon. However, he took advantage of this._

_As he slid past, he raised his tail up and slammed it down. The young dragon saw it coming and start rolling out of the way. While he dodged most of it, the tail slam still clipped him, driving him into the ground and sending him sliding. He grunted, getting to his feet as he faced Spyro, giving a light flap of his small wings._

_Spyro charged again while the young dragon stood his ground, readying his next attack._

_While the males charged each other, trading blow for blow, the two females were still circling. The larger of the two would occasionally feint, looking like she was about to charge in only to pull back. The smaller dragoness was watching her closely, eyeing her movements and looking at her with pity in her light-coloured eyes._

"_Do you know who I am, Cynder?" The small dragoness asked, faint hope shining in her voice._

_The dragoness known as Cynder smiled devilishly. "You are an insect who needs to be squashed!"_

"_No, I am your sister!" The small dragoness declared, taking a step forward. "Search your heart, sister, you know it is true!"_

_The plead the young dragoness spoke seemed to make Cynder falter for a moment. She froze, hesitating slightly as she stopped in her tracks, no longer circling with the dragoness who claims to be her sister. The words had struck a chord in her being, one that made her feel very conflicted._

"_S-Sister?" She asked, her voice sounding far less menacing than what it was before and very lost._

_The small dragoness nodded, beaming a bright smile of hope. "Yes! Look upon me and see that I am, in many ways, similar to you!"_

_Cynder let her eyes wander over the figure of the young dragoness. It was true, she shared many similarities with the large and corrupted dragoness. Yet, the conflict inside of Cynder was tearing her in two directions. One being to eradicated the small dragoness before her and the other being to hear her out and see it through._

"_I-I…kill…d-don't…"_

_The small dragoness smiled wider, venturing to take a few steps towards Cynder. She held out on her paw towards the larger dragoness, sitting on her hindquarters, calm and relaxed. She knew she was taking a huge risk here in lowering her guard before the large dragoness. There was every possibility that Cynder was faking this, that it was all a façade and was waiting for the right moment when the small dragoness' guard was lowered._

_However, she had total faith that Cynder was not going to attack._

"_Trust me, sister." She responded soothingly. "Take my paw."_

_Cynder looked down at the small paw before her. There was something inside of her, pulling her towards trusting the small dragoness. She would lift only to lower her own paw and do the same action over and over. Finally, after several moments, she slowly raised her paw and placed on top of the smaller one._

_Moments later, a great, soft, light grey light began spreading out from the joined paws._

* * *

_The steady growth of light caught the attention of both male dragons, causing them to stop in their tracks. Both were battered and worn down from their extended clash but this light…this pulsing grey light seemed to send waves of calming energy throughout the void they were in._

_The silhouette of Cynder could be seen in the mass of light, and it seemed to be shrinking!_

_When she stopped shrinking, the light faded and Cynder dropped to the ground, seemingly unconscious. The dragoness herself swayed on her feet, eyes wide as she shook her head lightly, trying to right herself again, unaware of what was happening on the opposite side of the growing column of light._

_Spyro, having noticed what happened to his companion, scowled profoundly and ignored the dragon he was fighting. He instead lined himself up with the dragoness, preparing to charge her and gore her._

_The dragon was one step ahead of him, however, as he seemed to realise something. His head dropped slightly, appearing to be searching inside of himself, as if hearing some unknown, unspoken voice inside. His eyes shut, and he began flapping his wings lightly, lifting himself a little off the ground. His vision flashed for a moment, showing his four elements mixing together, settling inside of him. A dark purple glow formed in his mouth, drawing Spyro's attention._

_The corrupted dragon knew what this was and his eyes went wide with alarm. He realigned himself with the young dragon, charging him without hesitation, intent on stopping him._

_He never did._

_The dark purple formed into a beam which the young dragon expelled. It flew across the field, slamming into Spyro's chest. He roared in anger and pain as he flailed about, trying to resist and get away from the beam. Yet, the more and more the beam pressed against him, the weaker his resistance got and, much like Cynder, he seemed to shrink._

_Several moments later, there was a small, purple draconic form in the place of where Spyro had been._

* * *

The images on the pool's surface faded away once the two corrupted dragons had been defeated. Vilya leaned back from the pool, wide-eyed at everything she had just born witness to. She didn't know how to describe, hell, she hardly had any idea of what she just experienced.

She glanced upwards, looking up her dragon spirit.

"What was that?" She asked.

Navaqua laid her body down, curling around Vilya. "That was during the War, well, the beginning of the second one. Arxad, the Purple Dragon, and Elyssa, the dragoness, had followed Spyro and Cynder, the two larger dragons, into a realm called Convexity."

"Convexity?"

Navaqua nodded. "It is an alternate dimension to our own here. It is an endless, iridescent void with its own natives. It seems to have no gravity of its own, and it was the prison of Malefor before he was released once again."

"And the power they used?"

"It is called Aether, but that topic is a little more complicated and could be discussed for hours on end. Suffice it to say, there are two versions of it. A Light and Dark form. The form they used was the Light form, purifying and cleansing the darkness inside of the two dragons."

"Wow…"

"This wasn't the only time they used the power. Two other incidents have been recorded of this power being used. Briefly during the Eternal Night, although that was the Dark form, and in the final battle against Malefor himself. Even Spyro and Cynder were able to harness the power of the Aether due to the mark left on them."

"This amazing to learn and everything, but what does any of it have to do with me?"

"It doesn't, but showing you _it_ is easier than explaining it to you. What does concern you though is that during a time when Malefor's minions were attacking the city of Warfang, Elyssa, Spyro, Arxad and Cynder were in the city, rescuing and relocating the citizens to keep them out of harm's way. Elyssa was circling around the back end of the city to make sure they had got everyone to safety when she noticed two Drarasiv."

"My parents Vilya replied, working that out quickly.

Navaqua nodded. "Yes, your parents. Your father was trapped under a fallen beam from one of the nearby buildings, and your mother was trying to pull him free. She wasn't alone, however. You were there but were only three years of age when this was happening."

"Then how-"

"Perhaps it would be better if I showed you."

* * *

"_Ancestors dammit all, Azarias! I'm not leaving you behind!"_

_The city was aflame, and the sounds of battle echoed through its many streets. Snarls of triumph and rage also echoed throughout the city as minions of Malefor ran rampant._

_The one known as Azarias had his leg trapped under a beam from one of the nearby houses. He knew it was likely broken as there was no feeling in his leg, only searing pain. He and his mate, Aurora, were running towards the Temple of the Guardians with their very young daughter, Vilya, down a side street when a creaking was heard followed by a snap. Noticing the support falling, Azarias pushed his mate and daughter ahead of him, saving them from the collapsing structure._

_It hit his back, and he fell down with it where it bounced off his back, rolling onto his legs, trapping them. Try as he might, the log was too thick and heavy for him to move. He was unable to channel his elemental power as he did not have his weapon with him. Aurora was the same as she tried to lift the beam off of Azarias._

"_Get you and Vilya out of here!" He countered._

_Aurora shook her head furiously, tears lining her eyes as she kept trying to get the beam off, screaming in frustration. Little Vilya was standing a short distance behind them, hands to her mouth as she watched nervously, tears in her eyes as well._

"_Are you alright, little one?"_

_Spinning around, little Vilya saw a dragoness approaching them. She had seen this dragoness around before, doing good things and helping people. She ran forward to meet the dragoness, throwing her arms around her neck and sobbing into her chest._

"_Daddy is stuck! He can't get free!"_

_The dragoness wrapped a paw around the little girl's back, shushing her softly as she moved the young Vilya onto her back with her wings. The dragoness began approaching the downed man and distraught woman._

"_Let's see if I can help."_

_Upon hearing the voice behind her, Aurora turned around, coming face to face with the dragoness. She noticed that her daughter was on her back and momentarily panicked. It faded quickly though as she quickly recognised who this dragoness was. She knew her child was safe currently and turned her attention to her mate._

"_Azarias is trapped under the beam! Please help him, Elyssa!" _

_The dragoness identified as Elyssa nodded, taking a few more steps forward and assessing the situation. After a few moments, she seemed satisfied as she nodded her head._

"_I need you to back up." She said to Aurora before looking down at Azarias. "Cover your head and face."_

_The two Drarasiv followed Elyssa's instructions, and once she was confident they were ready, she began drawing in air, focusing and channelling her Wind element. She wrapped her wings around the child, protecting her from the debris that would likely fly._

_With a great huff, Elyssa expelled the air she had pulled in and created, causing it to smash against the beam. It splintered in two from the sheer force of the wind, sending splinters of wood in every which direction._

_It may not have been the most pleasant way to do it, but Azarias was free nonetheless. He struggled to his feet, giving Elyssa a nod of thanks as they all began making their way to the Temple, Elyssa leading the way. Aurora was supporting her mate while little Vilya stayed on Elyssa's back, hunched over, hugging herself close to the dragoness' neck._

* * *

"_These times are not for a child. You and I both know that, Azarias."_

_Azarias sighed, looking over at Vilya who was sitting with other children, shuffling his positioning a little, only to hiss in pain as he did. "I know, but what can we do?"_

_Aurora wrapped one hand around one of her arms, looking down towards the ground. There was one thought in mind she had, one thing they could try._

"_There's always-"_

"_No," Azarias said sharply, cutting Aurora off. "Absolutely not."_

"_What would you suggest then?"_

_Little Vilya could hear her parents hushed argument. She had an inkling of an idea what they were talking. There was an incantation, forbidden knowledge it was, that had the power of ripping an individual from the Dragon Realms and sending them someplace, far from the Dragon Realms with no hope of return. Vilya had grown curious one day and gone looking for this incantation and had found it. The incantation was Draconic, but that wasn't the problem._

_The problem was that it required the blood of the one being sent away._

_Young as she may have been, Vilya had quickly understood why it was forbidden knowledge. If someone was able to get a hold of someone's blood, they could send them away, essentially 'killing' them._

_Reaching down into her boot, Vilya pulled forth a knife she had hidden there. She held it in both of her hands, turning it over and over, admiring its design. After having read the incantation, the young girl had always felt the need to keep a knife close at hand. She knew not why she had this desire, but now she did._

_Knowing what she had to do, she stood up and began cutting her hand, wincing in pain as she did so. The other young dragons Drarasiv around her watched with curiosity and confusion, not understanding what the girl was up to. Satisfied, she clenched her fist, walking over to her parents. She dropped the knife down near them, horrifying them somewhat that she had been carrying it._

"_If you need to send me away to keep me safe, then do it." She declared, holding out her hand she hadn't cut._

_Azarias did not look impressed with what Vilya had just pulled. He turned towards her, looking furious with her. Aurora was unsure how to react and only looked down at the ground, her eyes becoming lined with tears._

"_You do not understand what you are talking about, young lady. Go back over there and sit quietly. We will deal with this little act you have pulled off when this is all done."_

_Vilya closed her eyes and sighed. It was a sigh of sadness. She took several steps back from her parents, holding out the hand she had cut. A small pool of her own blood had started collecting in her hand and was beginning to seep through her fingers._

"_If you will not, then for the sake of you and mother, I will." She declared. "_For the safety of my own and those I love, send me away from this place._"_

_Azarias and Aurora had both wide eyes as they listened to their daughter chant the spell correctly. Azarias moved forward to try and stop his daughter, but it was already too late._

_The pool of blood in Vilya's hand glowed brightly, pushing Azarias backwards and denying him any further progress towards the young girl. The glow enveloped Vilya, obscuring any view of her but one thing could be clearly seen, one thing that broke the hearts of her parents before Vilya completely disappeared._

_She was crying._

* * *

"I…"

Vilya was at a loss for words. Tears had welled up in her eyes as she watched the ending of the memory. If anyone had merely told her that it was her, not her parents, she left, she wouldn't have believed them.

But now that she had seen…

Slowly, she stood up and walked around the pool, walking past it and out of the glade. Navaqua followed, but from a short distance, letting Vilya have her space for now. Vilya stopped just outside the meadow, looking at the open horizon, hugging her waist.

"I didn't realise I caused them so much…trouble…and you…you saw…all this…"

Without realising it, Vilya's sad thoughts started causing the landscape to change again. Storm clouds formed quickly, and soon enough, rain was pouring out of the sky. The temperature in the atmosphere dropped quickly as well.

Navaqua stepped up next to Vilya, sheltering her with one of her wings. No words were shared between the two, none were needed. Not currently anyway. It was for many minutes that neither of spoke, at least, until Navaqua felt the need to break the never-ending silence between them.

The uneasy silence.

"Your parents still love you, Vilya."

Did she deserve their love? Did she really deserve their love? She may be their daughter, and they may be her parents, but after all, she put them through…

Did she deserve their love?

Slowly, the landscape gave way to white, then black as Vilya returned to the waking world.


	8. Chapter 8: Preparations

**The Drarasiv Life  
Chapter 8: Preparations**

**SKdaGamer: I'm certainly taking a lot of what you say into consideration, don't worry. I can't improve if I don't listen to the advice I'm being given. Also, if you can hold on for this chapter and next, you'll get your history lesson. I promise!**

* * *

The first thing Vilya did upon awakening was roll over, burying her face into her pillow.

Her shoulders shook softly, and silent sobs left her mouth as she cried into her pillow. She couldn't believe the visions she had just born witness to moments ago. Sure, the times she was living in at the time weren't the best, but did she really have to go and pull a stunt like that?

Vilya was expecting Navaqua to tell her something at this point, but there was nothing. No words. Just silence. Perhaps, the dragoness had thought that it would best to give the young woman some space.

After several minutes of crying, muffled crying, into her pillow, the tears stopped. Vilya sat up on her knees, looking down at her tear-soaked pillow before glancing over her shoulder at the closed door behind her. She knew immediately what must be done and was already moving off of her bed, moving in the direction of that door.

She reefed the door opening, throwing it back on its hinges, causing it to slam against the wall. The sudden slam startled both her parents who stood up immediately, looking towards her with concern and worry. They had never heard her crying and the sudden entrance was alarming, especially the rate with which she was advancing towards the both of them. Fearing the worst, they braced themselves for the tirade of words to spouted.

However, without a single word spoken, Vilya walked up to both her parents and wrapped her arms around both their necks.

"I'm so sorry…" She sobbed softly. "I'm so damn sorry for everything I put you both through…"

Both Azarias and Aurora, who were initially shocked, relaxed immensely, both wrapping their arms around their daughter, holding her tightly and firmly. They rested their foreheads on one shoulder each while Vilya just rested in their combined grasp.

_**Please. This is pathetic. If you didn't want to cause undue problems, you shouldn't have pulled that little stunt in the first place. I knew there was a reason I never liked you back then and you haven't changed it seems.**_

That remark was the last straw for Vilya. After withdrawing from the embrace, she looked at both of her parents before reaching out to Navaqua, who was surging back real quick, holding her back as much as her mental willpower would allow. The dragoness seemed ready to reprimand Davnik once again before the young woman's next words floored her.

Hell, they floored everyone.

"What do I have to do to shut him up?"

Vilya's parents looked at her as if she had grown a second head. They knew the strength of Davnik. They knew he was arrogant and rude because he knew the extent of his strength. Davnik would never allow someone to beat him so easily.

_**Ha! You think you can challenge me, girl?**_

The realisation of what she had just said finally dawned on Vilya as she opened her to refute it. However, before she uttered a single word, her jaw clamped shut again. Vilya knew she couldn't deny what she had just said and try to take it back. It would make her look even worse in the eyes of Davnik. That was the last thing she needed right now when the goal was to get on his good side somehow.

Keyword being _somehow_.

"Yes, I do." Vilya said, her jaw set and a determined look in her eye.

A low, deep-throated growl echoed in the half-dragon girl's head. In this moment though, she wasn't going to be cowed. All her life she had been shunned, all her life she had been rejected. She had been forced to fend for herself, live for herself. It has been one massive fight for survival all her life.

Now however, Vilya was going to show that she would not be pushed around so easily. She was going to take a stand for herself and show others what she is capable of.

_**Fine. I will take your challenge but you would do well to train yourself first, wretch. It wouldn't be nearly as satisfying to crush a bug if it offers no resistance. I give you four weeks.**_

* * *

Vilya was walking through the halls of the Warfang Temple with her mother, heading for the training grounds. Not that Vilya knew this. However, there were many questions burning in her mind that she had been pondering. There was one more prominent than the others currently.

"Mom, why is Davnik so…"

"Rude?" Aurora finished for her.

"To put it lightly, yes."

A ghost of smile touched the older woman's lips. "That's something you're better off asking him. However, seeing how unlikely that is to be, I guess I'll have to tell you myself."

"Unlikely? Try impossible." Vilya muttered, her eyebrows furrowing lightly.

"True." The female Drarasiv said, chuckling a little. "In any case, Davnik acts as he does because in life, he was a dragon of an upper-class family. Any not on the same level as him or higher, he considers as inferior. However, there have been some dragons and Drarasiv to prove him wrong and he has, begrudgingly, accepted them."

Vilya frowned. "Why? So what if I'm not born to an upper-class family? Doesn't mean he has to be an ass about it."

Aurora turned her head the slightest bit, a smile growing on her lips as she glanced down at her daughter. Since the young girl's return to the Dragon Realms, Aurora was aware of how hard Vilya has had it so far. Left to fend for herself in the wild, learning skills on the go, being confronted with a mammoth of a city and now, the dragon of her father seems to hate her with a burning passion.

"Everyone is different, Vilya. Whether for good or bad, everybody is different."

"Great…my mother is getting all philosophical on me." Vilya responded in a mock exasperated tone before gesturing at the path before her. "Where are we going anyway, mom?"

"To train."

Vilya raised an eyebrow at this. "So soon? I have four weeks before my fight. Surely, I can be allowed a little relaxation time? It's been one continuous jump so far and not to mention I have so many more questions still."

"Patience. You'll get your rest and answers soon."

As Aurora finished speaking her piece, they arrived at their destination. The training room was a large circular room, perhaps one of the largest rooms in the Temple. The walls were marked with many marks. Claws, burns, frost and corrosion to name a few. It was a remarkably durable room for all it endured and it showed no signs of collasping. Either side of the large circular platform in the middle of the room were rows of benches, presumably for people to sit. Though, why anyway would sit in here was beyond Vilya. Finally, situated at the back of the room, between the benches, was a pedestal with a crystal, whose colours were scintillating, hovering above it.

What stood out the most to Vilya was that Awyn and Thrae were here.

"What are you two doing here?" Vilya asked curiously. "Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to see you both. Just confused."

Awyn got up off of the bench she was resting one, Thrae following behind her. She walked over to her friend, grinning widely as she did so before inclining her head to room now behind her.

"We're here to help you train."

This only cemented Vilya's confusion as she looked up at her mother. She noted that smile that her mother seemed to always have on her lips. It was almost like nothing could bring her mood down as she began answering the unasked question.

"While I can teach you reasonably well, Vilya, I haven't fought in a long time. My skills haven't diminished a great deal though." Aurora said, resting a hand on her daughter's shoulder. "I'm just not exactly as young as I use to be."

"Fair. How are we doing this though?"

Aurora stepped into the room and began moving to the opposite side of it. She raised a hand, letting brush against the surface of the floating crystal, feeling its power flow through her for a moment. Gesturing to the crystal and middle ground, the mother explained.

"I will use this crystal here summon enemies for you to fight. Allow Navaqua control so you can see what you can achieve should you dedicate yourself to this. Afterwards, you will start fending for yourself while your two friends watch, noting flaws in your stance and actions. After a certain amount of time has elapsed, we will end and they can then snow you under the avalanche of things you are doing wrong."

There was no hate. No malice. No wrong. Nothing in Aurora's voice indicated that she was being rude with her words. However, there was an unmistakable amount of mirth in her eyes. It was going to be amusing to finally be able to watch her daughter stumble around as she learns how to fight.

Vilya had moved into the centre of the room, drawing her blade out in one smooth motion. Her head snapped up, her eyes forming a light glare at her mother's final words but there was a smirk tugging at her lips. As much as her mother may have been right, she couldn't help but feel a streak of competitiveness flow through her.

"_You ready?" _Vilya asked internally, closing her eyes as she took a breath in then let it out. _"You're up now."_

**Waiting on you Vilya.**

Vilya gave a nod as she started surrendering control of her body to Navaqua. She drifted further into her body, no longer feeling the blade in her hand as her senses faded. Consequently, Navaqua was beginning to feel more in control. What were once Vilya's sense slowly became hers, her fingers tightening around the blade in her grasp as she brought up to her face, inspecting it. She swung the blade around in her hands, swinging it wide arcs as well as she got a feel for the weapon once again, listening intently to the soft hums it let out with each swing.

"What had you said the blade's name was again, Aurora?" Navaqua asked, now moving around in flowing movements, adjusting to the fact she had no weighty tail-blade holding her back. Where as in her dragon state, her tail-blade was heavy and clumsy.

"Nethersong." Aurora murmured, her focus currently on the crystal in front of her. "The blade hums when it slashes at a target, almost like it is singing."

Navaqua nodded her head several times as she settled herself into a battle-ready position. "A fitting name."

Without a moment's delay, the training grounds hummed to life with magic. Shards of light shot off from the crystal near Aurora, landing in differing spots around Navaqua. There, they formed into the shapes of apes who immediately sprung to life, screeching and chattering. They all drew an assortment of weapons, swords, clubs, axes, even a spear or two.

Navaqua stood calm and ready as the first of the apes charged her, brandishing a club. It swung it in a vicious overhead arc, she flicked her blade up at the crude weapon, parrying it to one side causing it and the ape to soar past her harmlessly. She had no time to rest as another came at her from behind, leaping into the air with a blade poised to impale her. The dragoness ducked and swayed to one side before pushing upright suddenly again, thrusting upwards with the blade to impale the ape who disappeared in a flash.

She didn't stop there however.

It was Navaqua's turn to go on the offensive. Without breaking her stride, she brought Nethersong down in her own overhead cut at the first ape, carving it from head to navel. From there, she advanced several steps towards another ape, pulling Nethersong free in the process, striking in blindingly fast strokes, the blade humming as she did, that her target was hard pressed to keep up with. The ape threw up its own blade in a series of hasty and clumsy parries, barely deflecting the lethal blade away. In a finality, the dragoness brought the blade down in another overhead cut, using both hands for more force and momentum. The ape put its blade up in a defence, broad side taking the brunt of the blow with its spare hand reinforcing the weapon, pushing back up as Navaqua pushed down.

Which was what she wanted.

With a growl of glee, Navaqua pulled back quickly and suddenly raising the blade above her, point aimed at the ape. The creature in question, caught off guard by the sudden change in pressure, ended up throwing its arms high and wide, exposing its body. Try as it might to block the strike to come, the pointed blade took it in the chest, ultimately ending its life.

Distracted as she was with her prey, she had forgotten about the other apes around and paid for it as a spear took her in the left calf. While such strike in a normal combat would have proven detrimental, the magic of the training arena prevented the created combatants from being harmful or potentially lethal.

However, that did not stop the pain.

Navaqua arched her back and dropped onto her rear as her leg buckled under her. She let out a roar of pain, spinning around to face her ambusher. The spear wielding ape lunged towards her, intent on driving its spear through the dragoness' chest and had it been any other opponent, it may have done that. Navaqua was no simple dragon though, she was an Elder Spirit, someone who had seen combat many times over, both in life and in her spiritual life. Nethersong flew to her defence, humming its soft song, as it flashed in front of the downed dragoness. The blade bit in and sawed through the shaft of the spear, causing the deadly point to hit the ground harmlessly. The ape brought the shaft up, staring dumbly at the now useless weapon before it was greeted with a blade to its neck from Navaqua's back-handed swing.

The dragoness finally climbed to her feet once again, blade held out in front of her as she eyed her final opponent. A large and more heavily built ape. In life, it would be a leader of the smaller apes, commanding them on while it looked for an opening. However, with the smaller ones dispatched, it was up to the leader to deal with Navaqua.

Yet, as Navaqua placed weight on her left leg, she hissed in pain, hobbling in place a little while relieving the pain.

While the magic of the arena may have prevented her from being seriously injured or disabled, it didn't prevent the 'effects' of an injury. The injured in question would still have to deal with their injury as if they had sustained it in a real fight. Only when the magic of the room faded would the 'injury' too fade.

Knowing she could no longer rely on her agility anymore, due to her own carelessness, Navaqua knew she had to play this carefully. She would have to wait for the ape to attack and hope she could outmanoeuvre him with small hops or utilise her wings in a clumsy effort to reposition. She knew it would be difficult to achieve, but it was a possibility.

The ape was wielding an axe and a shield, the former of which it battered against the latter, issuing a pre-emptive snarl of triumph, not realising who it was against. It charged forward, swinging the axe horizontally, back and forth to cleave the dragoness in twain from the waist, but she neatly avoided each strike by hopping backwards. She also brought Nethersong up in a half-hearted defence, absorbing most of the strength with the blade.

Once again, the two combatants eyed each other off. From her front row seat inside of her body, Vilya had a view of the entrance into the training room. There she noticed was a large number of dragons, Drarasiv and a purple dragon with a light blue underbelly, all watching silently but with great interest.

The dragoness for her part, however, did not notice the gathered crowd. She was too focused on her target in front of her and knew she could not keep hopping around and deflecting the attacks that came her way. She had to attack, but she had to be careful about. One wrong move would be the 'death' of her. Regardless, in battle, one had to take risks on some occasions.

She took one such risk as it posed itself. The ape came in with a horizontal sweep of its axe, once again seeking to hack his opponent through the waist. Navaqua responded quickly, leaping up, with some small assistance of her wings, perching precariously and lightly on the weapon before pushing off, once again with the help of her wings. She leapt towards the ape, her blade, Nethersong, piercing through its thick skull, killing it almost instantly. She used the follow through momentum to flip over the disappearing ape and land on her feet, hissing in pain as white-hot pain shot up her leg.

As quick as it came, it was gone as she was 'restored' only to be caught by surprise. From directly in front of her, there was a loud roar of approval and applause from in front of her.

Navaqua quickly returned control to Vilya, embarrassment welling up inside of her. She hadn't expected so many people to witness her prowess in combat. The sounds of battle must have carried throughout the halls and those nearby must have grown curious. This rapid response in change of control made Vilya giggle lightly, sheathing her blade as she did.

With a nod satisfaction, the purple dragon began ushering everyone out, stating they got see what they came for. There were many groans of disappointment as the majority of them wished to see another display of deadly grace. It would have to wait for another day it would seem.

"It would seem your daughter lucked out with the dragon she hosts." The purple dragon spoke, walking over to sit by Awyn and Thrae.

This caught Aurora attention, causing her to raise an eyebrow in question. "You know who Vilya's partner is?"

"Of course. Her combat style gives it away. The way she moved with speed and grace. I could name two other dragons who move with such speed and grace like Navaqua, but they are both males." He explained, a small smile playing at his lips as he looked towards Vilya by the end of his explanation.

"Very perceptive." Aurora responded, nodding her head several times. "It is actually a good thing you are here, Arxad. I was going to seek you out eventually."

_So, this is Arxad,_ Vilya mused silently.

He was the spitting image of what he saw in the vision Navaqua showed her. The only differences she noted were the light blue underbelly, the obviously larger wings, a wing span larger than most dragons she thought, a slightly larger tail-blade and much sharper as well. His horns were also more elongated.

"Oh?" He queried. "And what for may I ask?"

Aurora smiled gently, gesturing her head towards Vilya. "I was hoping you, Cynder, Spyro and Elyssa would help catch my daughter up with everything that has happened recently in a couple days. Just the Second War if you would, I feel it would answer a lot of her questions."

The purple dragon adopted a look of thoughtfulness, clacking one claw against the ground beneath him. Arxad knew he had nothing to do in the coming days and was more than happy to help as such. He was fairly sure Cynder would also be more than happy to given she had already been watching over Vilya, or so he had been told. However, he was fairly certain Spyro wouldn't be and knew for a fact Elyssa wasn't.

"Well," he began, "I would be more than happy to, as I'm sure Cynder would be as well. Spyro I believe will be with the Guardians then and Elyssa is still out tending to the outlying villages. I believe she is going to be in Morel for the next several days."

"Two is enough, even one of the four of you would have been fine. Thank you." Aurora turned her gaze to her daughter, addressing her next. "I believe their story will help to answer many questions you may still have."

Vilya nodded her head several times. It would be good to have a lot of questions answered at once.

Arxad looked towards Vilya, smiling gently at her. "You know where the library is in the city? That is where we will meet."

"East District." Awyn piped up, reminding her friend where the building in question was.

"Ah," Vilya said, nodding her head, "I do remember now."

"Excellent! Cynder and I shall see you there in a few days then!"

With that, Arxard waved a wing at them in farewell as he headed for the door. The other chorused their farewells and waved in return as well. Aurora moved over to the crystal again once Arxad was gone, smiling at her daughter.

"Well then, I do believe it is your turn Vilya."


	9. Chapter 9: Peace

**The Drarasiv Life  
Chapter 9: Peace**

The next half an hour was torture for Vilya.

It showed just how unskilled she was in combat. Her dodges were no more than a shuffle this way or that. Her parries were clumsy and lacked any urgency or strength. The icing on the cake was her total lack of awareness of those around her. In many instances, Vilya would 'die' as a spear takes her in the back, severing her spine or a blade stabs through her heart. In those moments, the apes disappear in a bright flash, signalling that Vilya had just been killed.

It was a hard and frustrating half an hour for Vilya. She knew she was pathetic at this, but she didn't understand why her mother was making her 'die' over and over.

A chance for personal improvement had been the response and it was partially true.

While Vilya herself may not have noticed so in her frustration, she was actually improving very slightly in some aspect. Her feet were starting move more in little hops as opposed to shuffles. However, it was clear that she was still a long way off.

Finally, her mother called and end to it with Awyn and Thrae stepping up to join Vilya.

Immediately, they started pointing out the numerous bad and few good. Awyn was able to show and mimic better than what Thrae could, being more melee inclined herself. However, that did not mean Thrae couldn't provide help either, revealing a dagger hidden in his boot that he kept in case he had to engage in close quarters. Awyn would get Vilya to mimic an attack and then show her friend what she could have done, providing tips and suggestions to avoid making the same mistake she had made. From there, she would then make a slow, mock attack towards Vilya to reinforce the advice, getting the half-dragon to replicate what she had been shown.

Navaqua had opted to remain relatively quiet, only chirping in here and there while letting Awyn mostly impart her knowledge on her friend. The dragoness could have very easily done all the teaching herself, but it was always good to let someone have the experience. It was a slow process, but Vilya was thankful for her friends showing her how to fight.

Aurora watched from a distance, smiling softly to herself as she watched the group of three friends. She remembered fondly the early days of peace. It was a short lived one at the time, but it was peace nonetheless. She and two of her closest friends, one being her now husband, had all worked together to learn their various weapons, helping each other out. They never left one of the others in the dust, always providing encouragement.

"Alright, I think that'll do for today." Aurora called, walking over to the young Drarasiv, a broad smile on her lips as her gaze rest on Vilya. "Let's get you home and cleaned up so you can have some time with your friends here."

Vilya grinned wide, very much liking that idea and the prospect of a warm shower or bath, whatever it happened to be here in the Realms, was an appealing one. She sheathed Nethersong once again, turning to Awyn and Thrae who were nodding, turned to leave.

"We'll meet you down at the Temple steps." Thrae said, readjusting the bow slung across his back.

With a nod between the three, Awyn and Thrae departed the training room, heading their separate ways as got into the hallway. Vilya and her mother followed soon after, taking the right path that would start bringing them back to their room where Azarias was. He had chosen to not tag along despite wishing to see his daughter learn and train. His reasoning was that he did not want Davnik getting into Vilya's head, dispiriting her through constant and unhelpful criticism.

The idea and gesture were greatly appreciated.

The walk back home was a relatively quiet one. Aurora would glance over at Vilya every so often, noting the look of deep thoughtfulness she wore. Her daughter was clearly pondering something. However, the mother knew that if it was something she wished to share, then she would do so in her own time.

"Mom…"

A smirk crossed Aurora lips. "Yes dear?"

There was a pause from Vilya. She was collecting her thoughts, thinking how to phrase her next words. The half-dragon knew that they were likely to dig up some painful memories for her mother. She had to tread carefully. "How…How was I able to chant that…spell…? I guess so perfectly?" Vilya began, turning her head the slightest bit to glance at her mother from her peripherals. "I was only three years old. No three-year-old human is that coherent in speech."

The smirk on the aged mother's lips faded somewhat as the memories return. Despite Vilya's best attempts to not drudge up the painful memories, Aurora couldn't help but feel a sting in her heart. She remembered how she had been heartbroken for days. Not even Freya or Azarias could break her from her stupor.

"I don't know entirely myself but you seem to forget that you aren't entirely human." The older female sighed. "There is an aspect of draconic to you as well which I feel might have influenced you."

Vilya furrowed her brows. "I don't follow."

"As Drarasiv, we are hosts to great dragons who have lived a full life and become one with the Ancestors. They choose who to continue living through and to help guide them with their knowledge. They also impart a great of draconian nature upon us as well which we are grateful for, well most of us anyway. As such, I believe we develop faster than what a human normally would."

"I see…" The young girl murmured, when in reality, she really didn't.

"It is a difficult topic to explain in a way for many to understand. It's just one of those things we have all accepted. We co-exist with a dragon; they teach us and we become stronger, faster, as a result. It's a kind of symbiotic relationship."

"If it is such a relationship, how do they benefit from it as well?" Vilya queried.

"Continued existence through us. They get to continue to see the world grow through our eyes and still leave their mark on the world." Aurora explained as her smiled returned. "Not to mention they get to express their skills in combat once again even if in a different fashion."

"I guess…"

As they came to their destination at last, Aurora's smile softened as she placed a reassuring hand on Vilya's shoulder. "Don't worry about, Vilya. It is in the past. Focus now on the present. You are home and have friends waiting for you. Now, hurry up and get yourself cleaned up. Bathroom is through there. The blue crystal controls the water, the red crystal controls heating."

A smile had made itself known throughout her mother's speech. She followed the direction her mother was pointing, soon finding herself in a small room. It served as the bathroom as her mother had indicated. Set against the wall opposite the door was a decent sized, porcelain sink with a small, square mirror sitting above. Off to her right was a tub, seemingly carved out of stone ground beneath her feet. However, unlike the rough texture of the ground, it was clearly smooth.

Vilya saw the two crystals that her mother had mentioned, one dark blue, the other fiery red, hovering above one end of the tub. She didn't know how they worked, so she began by walking over and touching the dark blue one. Almost immediately, water began flowing in through small holes in the base of the tub's interior.

Her body shuddered a little in anticipation. It had been a long time she had any kind of time to enjoy a long, warm and relaxing bath. She began quickly disrobing while keeping an eye on the water level. First, she unclasped her cloak, laying it on the sink which was soon followed by her white top and shorts which were lastly followed by her undergarments.

Judging the water level to be at a high enough level, Vilya touched the dark blue crystal again, the water flow slowly stopped and this time she touched the fiery red crystal. The immediate response was the bottom of the tub glowing with a soft orange-red colouring and as Vilya placed her hand in the water, she found it heated up at a relatively steady pace.

No more than a minute or so later, the water was at a satisfying temperature.

After touching the fiery red crystal again, the female dipped a foot into the water, shuddering again as the feeling of reinvigorating warmth flowed through her. Without hesitation, Vilya sat down and sank into the warm water, letting out a groan of satisfaction. The tension in her muscles began fading, the tweaks of pain she could feel from being constantly on the move were fading as well. The water seemed to almost seep into her body, feeling her body with a loving warmth once again.

It was pure bliss.

It was quickly interrupted as the bathroom door opened for Aurora to enter. The mother had a towel in her hand and was looking away from the tub at the far wall. Despite her mother's respect for her privacy, Vilya still couldn't resist wrapping her arms around her chest, while sinking further into the water.

"Sorry dear, just figured you might want a towel." She said, placing it on the sink while taking hold of Vilya's clothing before departing, leaving the girl in peace once again. "I'll just give these a quick wash."

Left alone once again, Vilya was consumed by the warmth of the water surrounding her bare body. She laid her head back, closing her eyes and let her thoughts wander. There was no particular thought she was concerned about in this moment. No concern to weigh heavily down upon her. All she cared about was the relaxing and feeling free sensation that came with the warmth.

So relaxing it was that she almost drifted off to sleep, catching herself right at the brink. Her body jolted with shock, surprising and scaring herself momentarily. The sudden movement caused the still water to be disturbed, making a bit of a splashing sound known as she sat upright, wiping the sleepiness from her eyes.

"A little too relaxed maybe…" She murmured, talking to no-one but herself.

The shroud of sleep dispelled, the half-dragon grabbed a bar of soap that lay nearby, lathering up her silver scales and underbelly, a feature she had really only noticed upon disrobing. The scales of her underbelly were a light gold, seemingly sparkling in the light. They started just above her chest and ran the length of her front, between her legs and down to the tip of her tail.

Satisfied, Vilya ran her hands and fingers along her body, scrubbing away any dirt and grime she found. She then dunked herself under the water, washing any remaining soap away from her body, leaving her with a feeling of cleanliness which had her shuddering pleasantly. Knowing it was time to get out, despite her wish to stay longer, Vilya stood and stepped out of the tub, reaching for the towel that lay nearby. As she was drying herself, she looked around the tub for some mechanism that would drain the water away. She wouldn't have to look long as the bottom of the tub depressed itself, allowing the water to flow through an opening that was hidden moments ago.

"Huh…neat."

Wrapping the towel around her frame, the female stood in front of the mirror, studying her features. After having had the chance to clean herself, her scales seemed to shine with a greater intensity than before. The sight brought a smile to Vilya's face, filling her with a new sense of joy and pride.

"Now I just need my clothes..."

Almost as if on cue, Aurora opened the bathroom door, stepping in one again with freshly cleaned clothing bundled in her arms. She brightened visibly, a broad smile creasing her lips as she took in her daughter's fresh appearance. Setting the clothes down on the sink, she stepped up behind the young Drarasiv, brushing her hands over the sliver scales that were visible.

"You look beautiful, dear." She said, gently turning Vilya to face her.

"Well, a nice long bath does help, especially after romping through the forest for several days." Was Vilya's response, a soft blush colouring her slivered cheeks.

"Indeed, and you're not done yet, we can make those scales shine and glimmer yet!" The mother said, clapping her hands together excitedly. She even squealed a little, a sight that made Vilya giggle.

This was a moment Aurora had clearly been looking forward to.

Opening one of the draws on the sink, Aurora pulled out a couple items. From Vilya's perspective, she recognised both, one being a kind of polishing cloth and the other some kind of small pick. What the small pick would be used for, she wasn't so sure about but she got the feeling she was about to find out.

"Now, I assume you will know what to do with this." Aurora said, gesturing to the cloth as she took hold of the pick. "This on the other hand, you might not, so allow me to show you."

The head of the pick was small and thin with the handle barely featuring in the aged Drarasiv's hand. She went about slipping the head between Vilya's scales, gently scrapping and pulling upwards or towards her, dislodging and removing any dirt and grime lodged there. Vilya marvelled at just how much was still inbetween her scales, having not been cleaned out by the bath and scrub themselves.

_"A useful implement."_

"As you can see, it cleans your scales that much more." The mother said, beaming happily as she placed the pick down. "Your clothes are cleaned as well, though, you might want to look at getting some more while you are out and about the city."

Vilya nodded but had a frown on her lips. "I would love to, but with what money."

"You finish up here. Let me and your father worry about that."

"But I-"

Vilya's mother held up a hand, cutting her daughter off. "I haven't been able to spoil you yet, Vilya, so I am going to spoil you now...even if it is a bit late." Aurora grinned, adding a sly wink to her final words as she leaned in, gathering her daughter up in a warm hug. The mother's smile was infectious as the Drarasiv girl found herself smiling in return, her own arms wrapping around her mother warmly.

As they reluctantly parted, Aurora placed a soft, loving kiss on Vilya's cheek before departing, that bright smile still ever present. There was nothing in the world that could bring Aurora down.

Letting out a puff, Vilya went about the laborious task of cleaning out her scales and polishing them. It was a little awkward and clumsy at first, resulting in a little bit of pain. She couldn't believe the gentle touch her mother had when she was doing this, causing her no pain or discomfort. However, as time progressed, Vilya adapted and eventually caused herself no more pain.

It took her an hour and a half of scale cleaning and polishing before she was dressing herself once again.

The one thing she found she was lacking currently, however, was a hairbrush to comb through her tangle of hair. It wasn't the most important of necessities currently but it would have been nice. As such, she opted for combing her clawed fingers through her hair, finding them to be a crude but adequate substitute.

Finally satisfied with her appearance, and a nervous flutter in her chest, Vilya opened the door and stepped out into the living room once again. She was greeted by her father whose eyes went wide, a quiet gasp leaving his lips as he took in Vilya's new appearance.

"My goodness you are beautiful..." He said softly, a proud smile showing through. "You are very much your mother's daughter."

"And I've been telling you that for how long now?" Aurora called out from another room, the sound of crystalline objects clattering against something.

Azarias let out a chuckle as he stepped forward, taking his turn to hug his daughter, one, to his delight, that she happily returned. It felt really nice to be with her parents once again and to feel their loving and protective embrace.

Even if they had started off rocky.

"Alright!" Aurora said as she walked back into the living room, carrying a small, leather sack with her. "There are a small number of gems in her for you to spend as you please."

Vilya took the small sack from her mother as it was offered and began tying it too her belt, catching a glimpse of the small and differently coloured gems inside. She looked up at her mother again, the question in her eyes.

"The different colours have different values. Reds are worth one gem, greens two, blues five, yellows ten and pinks are worth twenty-five. If you need to exchange one of the larger valued ones for a smaller one, you can do that one of the many Gem Exchanges throughout the city."

At a quick glance, and with some quick math, Vilya counted that she had a total value of one-hundred and forty gems in the sack. There appeared to be two pinks, three yellows, five blues, ten greens and fifteen reds.

"I guess I'm going shopping then." Vilya chirped happily.


End file.
